Harry Potter and the Missing Horcrux
by clathrate
Summary: My guess as to what book 7 will be like. There are many complications that will occur in the wizarding world because of Dumbledore's death.
1. Chapter 1: The Last Ride on the Express

CHAPTER 1: The last ride on the Hogwarts Express

A/N: My first fan fiction! It starts where book six ends. I think Dumbledore's death has a lot of implications that haven't been mentioned yet, and in a few chapters I'll get to what I think those are (they've been driving me crazy since I read the end of book six).

00000000000000000000

After Dumbledore's funeral, the students slowly walked toward the thestral-drawn carriages, to be escorted back to Hogsmeade to catch the Hogwarts Express back home.

Harry, surrounded by a crowd, yet feeling so alone, took one last look back Dumbledore's gleaming tomb. Against his will, a small smile began to spread as he watched Peeves swooping over the tomb, singing a tribute (quite off-tune) and throwing various objects clearly stolen from Professor Sprout's greenhouses at the tomb. A few puffapod seeds bounced off, amid the watering cans and fluffy pink earmuffs, and large flowers popped up and began to bloom around it.

Smiling, he turned again to look for Ron and Hermione. As much as he wanted them by his side during his search for the horcruxes, he still felt selfish putting them in danger- perhaps more danger than any other people in the world- by allowing them to accompany him on his journey.

Though there were a few people walking between them, and Harry could tell tears were still streaming down Hermione's face. As he watched, he saw Ron's hand tentatively slip into Hermione's and squeeze. Harry smiled as Hermione's hand squeezed back, yet he still felt a lurch in his stomach.

He wished so much he could bring Ginny along. But he wouldn't be selfish with _her_. He knew she'd be brilliant in a battle, and even would be helpful in determining what Voldemort was thinking- but Harry was walking right into Voldemort's path, and, regardless of whether Harry lived or died, Ginny must live- because Harry didn't know if he could continue fighting with her gone, too.

Ron and Hermione had just reached a carriage. Harry smiled slightly as he saw them both, automatically, look at where they knew the thestrals should be, although they still couldn't see them. Harry hoped they'd never been able to see them.

Crookshanks, who had been leading them, bottlebrush tail high, hopped first into the carriage. Harry began to jog in order to slip into the same carriage.

Once on board the Hogwart's Express, they began the usual shuffle to find an empty compartment. As terrified parents had already taken so many students home, they found one fairly quickly.

"Harry," began Hermione, "I…I think we should work out a game plan. Maybe some safe places to apparate to, in case we run into trouble."

Ron hesitantly laughed. "You think we'll run into trouble with the Dursleys, huh?"

Hermione glared at him. "How can you joke at a time like this?"

Ron smiled. "So, you don't mind accompanying two wizards with out licenses, do yeah?"

"You two can take the test right after the wedding!" Hermione huffed, "I don't want you be thrown into a stupid Ministry trial again."

Once again, against his will, Harry smiled. Maybe not so much has changed, after all. "You're right, Hermione. I was thinking the same. And, for safe places, I don't think we should appear at Number 12, Grimmauld Place every time, because if we are fighting Snape, he could follow us." He felt the anger that had been slowly dissipating surge up again at the mention of Snape.

Ron and Hermione exchanged a quick glance. Harry, upon noticing it, glared at them. "What was _that_ look for?"

"Well, it's just that," stumbled Hermione, "no matter what, we can't let Snape get in the way of your, well, our mission. No matter how much we hate him, we're the only people who know about the horcruxes. Let someone else take care of him. And speaking of such, why didn't you tell Professor McGonagall about the horcruxes? She's in the order, she's the new Headmistress, she could help…" she finished lamely, before trembling, "She knows so much more than us!"

Harry shook his head stubbornly. "Dumbledore said I could tell you two. But no one else."

Ron shook his head slightly, but knew Harry too well to argue with him. "Well, I reckon that Dumbledore fancied you as his replacement." He added, confidence building in his voice, "Figures you can handle it, like the Philosopher's Stone."

"And the Chamber of Secrets," Hermione chimed in.

Harry, who at one time would have blushed, just sat thoughtfully. "You know, you might be right. When we were coming back from the cave, he said he wasn't worried, because he was with me."

He saw a smile creep up on Ron and Hermione's faces and decided it was time to lighten the subject. "Er…you know, just because we are going to be missing our last year of school doesn't mean you two can give up your prefect jobs, does it?"

Hermione jumped up. "Oh my goodness! I completely forgot!" She grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him out the door to the front of the train. Harry laughed and went in search of Hedwig and Pig, who had been brought up to the train before the funeral.

00000000000000000000

As Harry walked back to the compartment, two cages in hand, he wondered if his stomach (and the emotions it seemed to contain) would ever be normal. Hedwig and Pig and been neatly perched on either side of Arnold, Ginny's purple pygmy puff. He wondered where she was. He thought about slipping on his invisibility cloak and looking for her, but shook that idea off, ashamed. He would never resort to spying on his girlfriend (As he so secretly still thought of her).

After sitting back down, he pulled out his copy of Advanced Potion Making. He'd taken it from the Room of Requirement earlier that morning, right after he'd destroyed (in a muggle fashion which make him resemble Dudley much more than he'd ever want to admit) the vanishing cabinet that was also hidden in the room.

He didn't quite feel the same sense of graditude toward the book, which, after all, belonged to Snape, yet he had a burning desire (once again located in his stomach) to defeat Snape. Defeat Snape using his own spells. Staring down at the spell he'd used once to suspend Ron by his ankle in the air, he remembered looking into the pensive and seeing his father use it against Snape. It had, the first time he'd seen the memory, caused him to question his father. But now he relived it with relish, his father using Snape's spells against him.

Harry thought for a moment. Was it actually a spell Snape invented? If so, how did his dad learn it? It was, after all, a non-verbal spell. Maybe it was just a spell Snape liked, and written in the book, he mused, which satisfied him even more, taking credit away from Snape.

He closed his eyes, imagining his father, along with Sirius and Lupin (he always managed to leave out Pettigrew in is dreams) defeating Snape. He slowly drifted to sleep.

00000000000000000000

When they reached Platform 9 ¾, Harry looked around. He was always pleasantly surprised that Uncle Vernon would actually arrive to pick him up.

Mr. Weasley was standing next to him, and issuing a stream of questions. Uncle Vernon, who's memory was at least good enough to remember the threats issued upon him last year if he mistreated Harry, appeared to be doing his best to squirm away without Mr. Weasley noticing.

Once again, Harry grinned. No matter how much the world around him was changing, at least there was stability in Uncle Vernon, he thought. Vernon stared at him. "What are you grinning at? I'm the one who should be grinning. After this trip, I'll never have to see you again." He rubbed his hands together, rather gleefully, before grabbing one end of Harry's truck and beginning to haul it off.

Harry, who's hand was still attached to the other end of the trunk, was dragged along, and stuttered, "Er…Uncle Vernon? Ron and Hermione are going to come, too…"

Uncle Vernon stopped in his tracks. Harry tripped over the trunk, and Hedwig hooted angrily as her cage slammed into it. Uncle Vernon's eyes narrowed. "I am NOT having any more of YOUR KIND in my home!" he roared. "And shut up that damned owl!"

Hedwig hooted indignantly, and Hermione hastily took her from Harry. She stepped up next to Harry, and trembled slightly as she looked into Uncle Vernon's purple face, but she held her ground. Harry felt Ron step up on his other side. Behind him, he could sense Mr. Weasley and other members of the Order surrounding them.

Uncle Vernon, looking around, realized people were staring at him. As the people staring were dressed perfectly normally, and were not carrying trunks, owls, or toads, he knew that were not wizards and that they thought he was making a scene. He swallowed, as he hated making a scene, and pulled Harry off the trunk. "Very well, boy, but this better be a short trip." He glanced sideways at Pig, who was, as usual, zooming around in his cage.

Ron grinned sheepishly and passed Pig's cage to Mr. Weasley.


	2. Chapter 2: Last Summer with the Dursleys

Thanks for the reviews! It definitely inspired me to get the next chapter out-and Tom, I'm waiting for your story now!

Disclaimer: I own nothing associated with Harry Potter (except for numerous action figures, books, blankets, pillows, and even this weird hanging mobile that my mom bought me)

CHAPTER 2: The Last Summer with the Dursleys

Harry wasn't exactly sure where Ron and Hermione were going to sleep. He hoped Uncle Vernon wouldn't suggest the cupboard under the stairs, but he wasn't sure if he'd be comfortable with three wizards sleeping upstairs, either.

Uncle Vernon had apparently been thinking about this same problem. When the car pulled into Number 4, Privet Drive, he turned and looked at the three of them. "Now, I don't want to see you any more than I have to, you got it? Stay up in that room of yours. I think your Aunt has some chores for you," he said, as he looked up and saw Petunia in the doorway.

"Vernon," she shrieked, "Harry's trunk, and two more, just landed on our kitchen table!"

Harry jumped out of the car, Ron and Hermione quickly following. "Opps," Ron blushed, "I guess I didn't quite vanish them to the right room."

Aunt Petunia looked shocked. "Who are _you_ two?" she snarled. Hermione stepped up, and gripped her hand. "I'm Hermione Granger, one of Harry's friends. And this is Ron." She shoved him forward and put his hand in Petunia's, forcing them to shake. "Right," Hermione said confidently, "I'll take care of the trunks."

She pulled out her wand and walked inside. Petunia followed, speechless. "Harry, show me your room," Hermione said, as she bewitched the trunks to follow her. Harry took them both upstairs to his room. It was a mess. He groaned, and began to pick up his stuff. He'd forgotten he'd left it in such a mess. He'd just been so exited when Dumbledore's letter had arrived, and so afraid he wouldn't show… Harry felt that now familiar flop of his stomach, and pushed the thoughts of Dumbledore's visit out of his mind.

Ron gleefully pulled out his wand and attempted to put the room in order.

Uncle Vernon suddenly pushed open the bedroom door. His face was once again a brilliant purple, and Harry could see chunks of his mustache missing. "WHAT WAS SHE DOING…._THAT_…FOR?"

Harry smiled inwardly. Apparently three wizards in the house scared Uncle Vernon a bit. He'd be willing to bet it wouldn't have taken him a full 30 seconds to storm up the stairs if Harry'd been the one doing magic. Harry shrugged. "Hermione's of age. She can do magic without getting in trouble." He paused for one, beautiful second before adding, "And so can Ron."

Harry thought he saw Uncle Vernon's eyes widen, but he quickly gained control of his anger and shouted, "NOT WHILE THEY'RE IN MY HOME," before stomping back down the stairs.

Harry turned around, and saw Ron rolling on the floor laughing, and Hermione looking anxious. "I'm sorry, Harry. I didn't mean to cause trouble."

Harry smile and said, "Naw, it was great. I almost missed that face. I think I'm going to like having you two here."

Ron came up for air, and managed to get out, "His moustache!" before falling back down. Harry and Hermione began to laugh, too.

After Harry regained his breath, he asked, "Why didn't an underage warning appear, though? The ministry can't tell who does the magic, Dumbledore told me so." He felt the stomach flop again. Was he ever going to get used to him being gone?

Ron merely said, "My dad told them we'd be here."

"Excellent, then I can use magic, too!" Harry exclaimed. Hermione groaned. "Only joking, only joking, Hermione!"

They half-heartedly cleaned up the room. Then Hermione cleverly transfigured some of Dudley's old toys (the real air rifle and the tank) into sleeping bags. They shoved Ron's attempts at transfiguring toys back under Harry's bed (where they found, with a shock, The Monster Book of Monsters), and the three headed back down the stairs to the kitchen for some food.

Just as they entered the kitchen, Dudley entered through the back door. Another year of boxing made him more formable looking than ever, and the second he saw Harry, his thick arms were around his neck, crushing him. "I haven't forgotten about what you did to me last summer," he growled. Harry remembered when Dudley would watch wrestling on the telly, and Harry had a faint vision of him and Dudley in the wrestling ring. Apparently those moves weren't quite as fake as they looked on TV, Harry thought as he squirmed for breath.

Ron had jumped on Dudley's back, using the same wrestling move, but apparently didn't quite have the same force as Dudley, as Dudley noticed him about as much as the troll noticed Harry back inyear 2when Harry was hanging on his back. Unfortunately, Ron did not have a wand handy to stick up Dudley's nose, so, Hermione, sighing, pulled out her own wand and waved it, muttering, "_Petrificus Totalus_!"

Dudley's arms and legs snapped to his side and he fell against the sink. Harry jumped up and massaged his throat. "Thanks, Hermione." He looked at Dudley, "For the last time, I was PROTECTING you last summer. Now stop attacking us." He muttered the counter-curse.

Dudley just stood there, blinking. Ron looked him in the eyes and said, "BOO!"

Dudley found his feet, and ran up the stairs. "RON!" Hermione shouted, "That isn't funny."

"Yes, it is!" Harry and Ron smiled together. "Come on, let's find something to eat."

0000000000000000000

Fortunately for everyone involved, the next day Dudley had a boxing tournament, and so Harry, Ron, and Hermione woke up with the whole house to themselves. They settled into the living room, intending to finally show Ron a television, when Aunt Petunia walked into the room. Harry looked at her, surprised. "I thought you were going to Dudley's tournament?"

"I am…But I know you are leaving for good soon, and I wanted to give you something." She pulled out a battered wooden trunk. She opened it, and pulled out some blankets. "You were left on our doorstep nearly 16 years ago. And you were wrapped in these. That man, the one who picked you up last year, left you wrapped in these, with this letter." She sniffled slightly. "I don't know why I kept it. I still pretend like she isn't my sister. But I did. And, um…when my parents died, which was right before your mom and dad were killed, they left a house full of different things of Lily's." She gestured toward the trunk. "Something all these years has made me keep them." She stood up abruptly. "I have to go to Dudley's tournament." She walked out, and it wasn't until they heard her car pull out of the driveway that Harry, not speaking, slowly got up from his chair and moved toward the trunk.

He looked at the trunk more closely. It had chipped paint, with a crudely drawn lily on the center. He looked inside. He pulled out a coloring book. It had "LILY" scribbled on the inside cover. He smiled. He found old, muggle homework, with a smiley face on the top. He pulled out a tiny baby dress. He looked at it and wondered if it had been his mom's first dress. He found a small pair of ruby slippers. She must have liked that movie! Harry smiled, and imagined his mom dressed up. "I wonder if she'd been drawn to the movie because it has witches in it," he mused.

Hermione and Ron had wordlessly been looking at each item, after Harry had carefully set it down. After the entire trunk had been emptied, Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, expectantly. He didn't know what to say.

He was filled with warmth, and sat down, still looking at them. Finally, Hermione cleared her throat and said, " Everything here is from before she came to Hogwarts."

Harry looked over it quickly and realized she was right. He knew then that he was right to travel back to Godric's Hollow. "That is why I have to go back to their home, in Godric's Hollow. I'll be able to fill in the rest of the story."

00000000000000000000

The remainder of the visit at Number 4, Privet Drive, was unremarkable. Aunt Petunia didn't even mention the trunk, or look in Harry's direction again. Instead, she and Vernon, as usual, piled praise on Dudley, who'd just become the light heavyweight champ in the city boxing league, and ignored Harry. Dudley, of course,had never had a positive encounter yet with a wizard, and chose to spend more time than usual roaming the neighborhood with his gang rather than face Harry's "gang".

Harry's insides were becoming more and more twisted as the visit to the Burrow approached. He'd not talked to Ginny since the funeral, and was slightly afraid to do so now. So far, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had refrained from mentioned the youngest member of the Weasley family.

When Harry's stomach wasn't focused on Ginny, it was twisting in agony of not knowing what to do about the horcruxes. He just kept his mind Godric's Hollow, and was praying he'd realize what to do once he got there.

They decided to spend a couple of days visiting Fred and George in Diagon Alley, and so, two days before the wedding, they (Hermione insisted she did it, actually) vanished their trunks- Harry now owning two of them- to Fred and George's flat above Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

The three of them decided to apparate to Diagon Alley. Hermione, of course, insisted that Harry and Ron, neither of whom had yet gotten their license, side-apparate with her when they left.

Once they reached Diagon Alley, Harry let his mind wander- what exactly do you buy as a wedding gift at a wizard's wedding? he wondered.

Hermione also apparently was wondering the same thing. "Ron, is there any difference between a wizard's wedding and a muggle wedding?"

Ron looked at her, "What, you think I took muggle studies? How the heck should I know?" He grinned. "You mean, in all the pages of Hogwarts, a History, there isn't a single wedding?"

Harry and Hermione looked at each other and laughed.


	3. Chapter 3: Bill & Fleur's Wedding

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing involving Harry Potter except for a few gross tasting Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans that I just couldn't bring myself to eat.

CHAPTER 3: Bill & Fleur's Wedding Day

Hermione, Harry, Ron, Fred and George all apparated to the Burrow two days later. Fred and George were wearing matching, shocking pink robes. Harry wondered if they'd finally gone off the deep end, or if it was another wizard tradition he just didn't know. He decided not to ask, although the small snigger Ron emitted when Hermione complimented their robes seemed to answer his question.

Hermione had once again used liberal amounts of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion and seemed to be dressed in new robes, although Harry truthfully couldn't be sure. He didn't think he'd ever seen them before and, judging by the way he was staring, Ron hadn't either. Hermione looked rather pleased, although when she caught Harry looking at her, she quickly rearranged her face back to normal. Harry wondered if they'd finally kissed yet, but didn't dare ask.

They had apparated a short walk from the Burrow.

Harry was torn between being interested in the wedding and dreading it. Although he'd never been to a wedding before, muggle or not, he'd seen enough on the telly to know that men weren't supposed to enjoy weddings. Yet it was nice to look forward to something happy for a change. He mused over this as they walked. Finally, he concluded that Dumbledore would have been overjoyed to be at the wedding, and that was good enough for him. Glad he'd decided to enjoy it, he quickened his pace and Harry allowed his mind to imagine his parent's wedding. Maybe he'd ask Lupin what it had been like. Harry suspected, although he'd never, EVER tell Ron, that he was suddenly more interested in weddings when he looked at those pictures of a beautiful redhead marrying a man that looked so much like himself.

As they reached the front of the Burrow, Harry suddenly was knocked to the ground- by? What was it? He stuck his hand out. He couldn't see anything. Harry looked around, confused. Was it an invisible wall? He realized that Ron and Hermione were on the other side, looking slightly bewildered. Harry remembered the last time he'd been stopped by a barrier, but somehow, he didn't think Dobby had a hand in this. Why, though, could Ron and Hermione get through?

Harry stood back up, and walked cautiously to the barrier, but again could not pass through it. He began feeling his way around it, by touch since he still couldn't see it. It seemed to extend in every direction. He shook his head, confused.

He suddenly caught a glimpse of Fred and George who were, standing far away from Harry, doubled over with laughter.

Hermione looked as though she was thinking hard, and suddenly laughed, too. "Um, Harry? Did you remember to bring your invitation with you?"

Harry privately thought, who'd do a stupid thing like that? Out loud, he said, in what he hoped was a dignified voice, "Of course not. I can remember the time and location."

Everyone cracked up. "But, Harry, you can't get in without an invitation!" George managed, before falling to the ground in tears of laughter. Fred walked through the barrier (show-off, Harry thought) and pounded Ron's back. "Remember when we did that to you, Ron?"

Ron looked indignant. "How could I forget? Mum yelled at me so much! We had to miss the wedding going back to look for that stupid invitation that you hid!"

Hermione looked worried, "Harry, do you remember where you put the invitation?"

"Yes," he sighed. "_Accio Invitation_". It soared from his trunk, where it had been nestled near the wedding pages of his photo album, and Harry could suddenly walk forward. Hermione shot him a dirty look. Probably for the underage magic, he mused as they finally made it into the house.

Against his will, he scanned the room for Ginny, but she was no where to be seen. He sighed, but when Hermione looked at him knowingly, he turned his head and found a new subject to focus on. "Mrs. Weasley, you look wonderful," he said, truthfully.

"Oh, thank you, Harry," She blushed right to the tip of her ears, just the way Ron did. Her face turned serious. "Now, where have you children been?"

"MUM! We aren't "children" anymore," Ron whined.

"Of course not, dears. Well, you young men should be out in the backyard, helping finish up." They all turned toward the back door. "Not you two, you are guests, why don't you relax?"

"No, we'd really like to help," Hermione said eagerly. Ron looked at her and rolled his eyes. "Mom, Hermione can be as weird as dad when it comes to learning about wizards." Shaking his head he mocked her in a high voice, "Oh, Ron, what's a muggle wedding like? OH, really? How fascinating!" Before they could start a fight, Mrs. Weasley sent Hermione upstairs to help Ginny and Gabrielle, and Harry was ushered into the backyard.

The backyard had been completely transformed, although it still looked like a standard muggle wedding by Harry's opinion, with the exception that the seats seemed to be placed in a circle surrounded by live fairy decorations and the flowers appeared to be floating in mid-air.

Harry was unsure how he could help, but spotting a lone gnome hiding underneath a fluffy white chair, he seized it and tossed it over fence.

0000000000000000000

Shortly later, guests and the "spell-binder" arrived. Mr. Weasley explained that the spell-binder was the person who made sure the marriage was, well, binding. In the midst of explaining the differences he'd seen thus far between the wizarding and muggle weddings, a large bell (which was apparently floating mid-air as well) chimed. "Oh, goodness, Harry, I've got to get us seated!" Mr. Weasley rushed off, and Harry slid into a fluffy white chair next to Hermione.

The bells chimed again, and everyone stood up, so Harry and Hermione did as well. They both turned to look back at the house, as was standard in muggle weddings, but to their surprise, Bill and Fleur suddenly appeared in the center of the circle, and it was the Weasley brothers, Ginny, and Gabrielle that stood in the aisles.

Ginny was standing mere feet from Harry. She looked determined not to catch his eye. Harry sighed, unsure if he was relieved or angry. Ron, who was standing a few aisles away from Harry, kept his eyes closed. Harry smiled, apparently Fleur was still turning on that Veela charm.

After some rather long and boring vows (Harry began to wonder if muggle men were right about weddings after all), the spell-binder produced a shining gold ribbon out of his wand which circled around Bill and Fleur, then traced around Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Fleur's parents, and then around all of the attendents in the aisles. They were pulled into the circle and after a bit more complicated wiggling by the ribbon, it began to shrink until it was just circling Bill and Fleur's ring fingers. A moment later, the ribbon disappeared and they were both wearing shining gold rings. And then, they kissed, just like in muggle weddings.

And, just like in muggle weddings, many of the guests cried. Of course, most muggle weddings don't have a crying half-giant or howling dog, but as Hagrid wouldn't let Fang out of his sight since the attack on Hogwarts, this wedding was complete with both. Bill grinned as he listened to Fang's surprisingly musical howl. Even Fleur offered a smile.

00000000000000000000

Harry and Ron wandered around the backyard of the Burrow. He forced a smile at Percy, who'd showed up, rather reluctantly. They learned that Percy was no longer dating Penelope Clearwater. Ron had snorted gleefully when he'd learned that, and Percy turned and left before they could learn any of the details. Mrs. Weasley shot them a dirty look as Percy turned to leave, and ran to stop him.

Harry knew many of the faces present- many members of the Order, including Professor McGonagall. But there were many people he didn't recognize, presumable Fleur's friends and family. One group of rough looking men most certainly appeared to be Bill's co-cursebreakers. Harry noticed one of them looking at Ginny with appraising eyes and Harry decided to not meet that particular group of people.

He wandered past the table full of gifts- in this aspect, fairly similar to muggle weddings in that he and Hermione had bought them a set of dishes, although these dishes had images of seductive Veelas on them. They caused quite a commotion in the the store, as the display case was surrounded by men. But they thought Bill would be able to handle them.

Harry walked up to the newly married couple to wish them a happy life, and noticed, up close, that Bill was still covered in scars, although they had healed and were no longer gushing blood. And of course, Fleur kissed him on each cheek and thanked him for coming. Harry chanced a glance at Ron. Yep, he still was jealous of those kisses. Harry grinned, but when he caught Ginny glancing at him, clearly _not_ approving of the kisses, the smile was gone.

Sighing, Harry and Ron found Hermione and they walked to the tables of food. Ron pointed this out proudly to Hermione, "See Hermione, no house elves! We have to feed ourselves." Hermione rolled her eyes and helped herself to some bouillabaisse, which Ron still avoided.

They seated themselves next to Lupin and Tonks (whose hair, clearly for the occasion, was blonde and long and put up in a fancy bun). "Wotcher, Harry!" She smiled. Harry, Ron, and Hermione grinned back.

"Professor?" Harry asked tentatively. "Would you tell us a bit more about my parent's wedding?" Lupin looked at him, surprised. Harry usually didn't like to ask questions that would inevitably lead to Pettigrew, and thus his parents' deaths, but today he was curious.

Lupin cleared his throat. "Well, it was a bright, sunny day, like today. It was at James' parents' house. I remember it was difficult, because Lily _so_ wanted all of her family to come."

"They didn't?" Harry growled.

"Well, not her sister." He continued hastily, "But her parents came, they were so proud of her! And they loved James…Well, who wouldn't? He was the best friend any of us had." Lupin paused, reminiscing.

"So," Harry asked casually, "if I go back to Godric's Hollow, how much of it is left?"

Lupin sat thoughtfully. "Well, I don't really know. You see, Pettigrew was their secret-keeper. And he didn't even reveal to me where they were."

"Huh? But you've been there before, right?"

"Yes, but the Fidelius Charm means that their location couldn't be revealed. So I couldn't, for example, apparate there."

"But," Hermione interrupted, "Since Harry's parents are gone, doesn't that mean the spell is broken? She concluded, "And so…you should be able to go there again."

Lupin looked at her. "You're probably right. I just haven't been able to bring myself back. I don't know if any one has gone back since it happened." A shadow seemed to fall over them. "Not too many people know that spell. I think Dumbledore is the only person I've met who has actually performed it, so not much is know about it." They fell silent at the thought of Dumbledore.

"Well," Tonks said, a bit too cheerfully, "who wants dessert?" She summoned several slices of cake (only one of which she dropped); each bewitched such that the frosted flowers changed their shapes every few seconds. She paused, and took a big bite as it switched to a rose.

000000000000000000000

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had decided to stay at Number 12, Grimmauld Place after the wedding. They didn't want to bring the Weasley family into any more danger by staying at the Burrow. And so, as Harry was walking back to the dessert table for one more piece of cake, he decided he'd have to see Ginny once more before leaving for good. Fortunately, she was already standing by the cake, looking beautiful in the golden robes that Fleur had picked out. Of course, Harry thought she was just as beautiful in the second-hand robes she usually wore. Harry walked up to her and without thinking, placed his hand on her back. She jumped.

"Oh, hi Harry," she said- her voice was…strained. What was it? Harry couldn't tell. Anger? Sadness?

Harry took a deep breath. "Want to sit down together?" She looked into his eyes.

He willed her to say yes, to say anything. Oh, no, Harry thought. Is she going to cry? Harry didn't have a good track record with crying girls. But Ginny didn't cry, and simply nodded her head and said softly, "Of course."

They sat a bit away from the other people at the reception, eating their cake. The flower on the cake turned to a white lily. It looked beautiful next to Ginny's red hair. Harry was strongly regretting breaking up with her. "Selfish, I'm selfish," he whispered to himself.

Ginny looked over at him. She sighed. "Harry, you are not selfish. You are…noble and… just trying to protect me…. I wish you wouldn't. But I won't ask to join you. I'll be here. Though I'll join you the second you ask. I love you." She continued to look into his eyes, leaned over, and kissed him. "I don't want to be another burden you have to deal with, or worry about."

Harry kissed her back with feeling. "I love you, too, Ginny." He put his arm around her and smiled. Ginny was perfect. And he _was_ selfish, he thought.

He looked across the backyard and saw Ron and Hermione in a similar position. He smiled, happy they had found each other. Which is exactly what Dumbledore would have wanted.

**A/N**: Thanks for encouraging me, jinxedpotterfan13- I got this one out fast for you :)

And starting with the next chapter, we're going to hit some action. I hope you like it!


	4. Chapter 4: First Night Alone

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JKR, I only own a few Chocolate Frog cards. When I looked at them, the pictures stayed put, which, although expected, was highly disappointing. I honestly haven't looked at them again.

**A/N**: Everyone, thank you so much for the wonderful reviews! It really makes me want to get these out and I'll do my best to make them longer, but no promises :) Thanks for the ministry advice, too! As for Aunt Petunia, well, I'll admit that was the hardest paragraph I wrote in that chapter- any suggestions on how to make it more Petunia-like? Thanks again!

**CHAPTER 4:** First Night Alone

Late after the wedding, Harry, Ron, and Hermione apparated to the doorstep of Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

"How do we get in?" Ron wondered. "Someone's always been there to unlock the door before…"

Harry laughed. "Easy. It's mine now, right?" And he confidently stepped up to the door and it opened for him.

The three were in a very good mood; Mrs. Weasley hadn't even yelled at them when they said they were staying at Harry's house. Ron took this as a good sign, that she was finally realizing he was of age, and that he could do as he please. Hermione rather doubted this, and suspected it was more likely that the drinks Mrs. Weasley had been consuming had a say in the matter.

The lights were off, and they promptly bumped into the portrait of Mrs. Black. "Filthy Mudblood! Blood traitors! Dirt! Enemy of my Lord! How dare you remove my house-elf!" She screamed. They sighed, muttered "_lumos_" and spent the next 20 minutes trying to shut the curtains that usually cover the painting.

"Urgh, Hermione, can't you curse that picture or something?" Ron begged.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You think the Order hasn't tried that yet?" But she smiled, and took it as a compliment.

They wearily walked into the kitchen. The empty kitchen.

"Excellent," Ron exclaimed. "A whole house to ourselves! Not even Kreacher is here! Hey, Harry, maybe you should ask Dobby to come and help with the house. I mean, we are supposed to be searching for the horcruxes, not doing dishes and stuff."

Although Harry was pretty sure by this point that Ron and Hermione were snogging, it certainly didn't stop Hermione from crossing her eyes and yelling at Ron. She pulled out two S.P.E.W badges from her pocket and shoved them towards Ron and Harry. They looked at her, amazed.

"Who carries S.P.E.W. badges around in dress robes?" Ron dared to ask out loud. Hermione's voice simply got louder. But Ron didn't seem to step down. Privately, Harry thought Hermione might start losing these arguments now that she didn't have the "I won't let you copy my homework" leverage anymore.

Finally, he cleared his voice loudly, sat down at the table and said, "I think we should start a plan." Now, this declaration was, Harry admitted to himself, partly so he wouldn't have to admit to Hermione that he'd tossed his S.P.E.W secretary notebook in the fire at Hogwarts. But it was mostly due to the fact that they had no idea of how to find these horcruxes.

Ron and Hermione finally stopped arguing. Harry continued, "We should decide some stuff now, because members of the Order will probably be popping in here all the time. I wonder why no one is here now?"

Ron snorted and slid into the chair across from Harry. "They're probably all passed out at the Burrow." Hermione giggled in spite of herself. Seeing Professor McGonagall tipsy was definitely a first for all of them. Of course, since Ron and Hermione were of age, they were both a bit tipsy, too. All right, Harry admitted to himself, he was also tipsy. Fred and George had supplied him with plenty of drinks, much to Mrs. Weasley's horror.

Harry's concentration attempted to slide back to their mission, but he knew when they were beat. It was just too late to make plans. After all, his head was pounding. "Okay, let's just go to bed. And tomorrow, we can head over to Godric's Hollow."

Before the conversation with Lupin at the wedding, Harry had never considered whether this would be difficult or not. But now, he wasn't sure if the house would be visible to Ron and Hermione. Harry figured, as a Potter, he'd be able to find the house. But was Hermione right? Since his parents were dead, was the secret lifted? Or was their hiding place, or at least their bodies, still in hiding until Pettigrew revealed it to someone other than Voldemort?

He mentioned these thoughts to Ron and Hermione as they were climbing the stairs. "Well, of course we can find it," said Hermione matter-of-factly. "Didn't Hagrid go to the house to pick you up? And so the secret must be gone. I'm surprised Professor Lupin didn't think of that himself."

Remembering Tonks on Lupin's arm, Harry wasn't so surprised. Lupin had seemed rather (happily) distracted.

"Good," Harry said. "Then first thing tomorrow, I think we should head over there. They were standing in front of his bedroom door. "So one last thing. The horcruxes. There was supposed to be seven, including Voldemort. So that is six objects. But Dumbledore thinks number six was supposed to involve me. So that means five. And the diary (Harry's heart beat a bit faster thinking about Ginny) and the ring are both destroyed. So three horcruxes. The Hufflepuff cup, the Slytherin locket, and something from either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor." He paused, and he finished, "and then Dumbledore thought that he replaced what should have been my horcrux with Nagini. So four."

There was a pause. Yes, they knew what they had to find, but how would they find it? "So, I think we need to figure out who R.A.B is, firstly," Hermione said, business-like. "And then that may lead to the cup and locket, and the unknown one. We'll tackle Voldemort and Nagini, last, of course."

"Right," Harry said, in what he hoped was a confident voice. "Good plan." Truthfully, he felt about as calm as he did in those days leading up to the second triwizard task, and just as hopeless. Maybe they should ask Dobby to stay, he mused. He certainly helped out that time. But Hermione would probably force him to wear that S.P.E.W. badge.

Thinking back to his actions leading up to the merpeople task, he gave himself a mental reminder to remember to eat this time around. His pounding headache was beginning to take over, so he muttered good night and opened his door.

000000000000000000000

Harry had returned to his bedroom with the portrait of Phineas Nigellus. Nigellus looked at him. "Back, are ya boy? Probably running off and trying to save the world. Good luck if even Dumbledore can't do it." Harry sighed and didn't answer. He suddenly wasn't sleepy anymore. He kept running over the plan in his head. They weren't missing anything, were they? How would he find the locket, cup and the unknown third?

He twisted aimlessly in bed, and firmly resolved that he must remember to sleep as well as eat everyday. He wondered if this was how Hermione felt before exams. He sighed again. He decided it was remarkably cold for a late July night. He grumbled and found an old blanket in a dresser drawer.

A fire sure would be nice, he thought presently. He laughed. Dobby just kept looking better and better. And Dobby would be overjoyed to help him… He wondered if Hermione would insist on S.P.E.W. badges if Dobby came. He re-resolved to go to sleep, and maybe call Kreacher the next day and ask him to bring Dobby to the house tomorrow. The company would be nice. He crawled back into bed.

00000000000000000000

Hours later, still not asleep, and sighing for what he thought must be about the four hundredth time, Harry decided to get a glass of water. He walked down the darken hall, too lazy to bring his wand. Ron was snoring softly. Harry smiled, comforted by the familiar sound.

He walked down the stairs and softly cursed that he'd left his wand in his room when he couldn't find a glass. A few desperate minutes later, he found one, and he blindly turned on the water tap. He found some food in a pantry and decided he was glad it was dark after all, since it was probably old and moldy.

He turned to head back up the stairs when, from behind, he heard "_lumos_". He turned, startled, and dropped his water. Glass shattered on his bare feet. He didn't feel it.

Rage, pure, white-hot rage boiled in Harry. He opened his mouth to scream, but "_silencio_" was whispered in an oily voice, and Harry's mouth opened and closed pointlessly. He squeezed his fists, ready to fight Snape with his bare hands, but with a flick of his wrist, Harry's feet were frozen in place.

"Really, Potter, nearly a full-aged wizard and you still can't remember to carry a wand?" Snape's mouth curled. "Potter, you're pathetic." They stared at each other for a full minute, Harry full of rage and Snape in his controlled calmness.

Finally, ever so slowly, his wand raised again until it was steadily pointing at Harry's chest. Clearly, Snape was enjoying himself. Harry stood silent, waiting.

Snape softly voiced, "_crucio_". Harry fell to the floor, twitching and screaming in his head.

Snape released the unforgivable spell. "I know what you are thinking. You're wondering why I don't kill you. Perhaps even you are smarter than I give you credit for, and managed to wonder why am I here? No, Potter," he snapped, " it is not occlumency, you are just very transparent." Snape's eyes gleamed.

NO! Harry screamed in his head. I'm thinking about destroying you! He no longer saw Snape, he simply saw Dumbledore, falling over the battlements, over and over again. He began screaming the killing curse in his head with all of his might. But Snape merely continued, "You know very well that the Dark Lord wishes to be the one to defeat you. I merely have a proposal for you. Well, Potter? What do you say?"

Harry hadn't realized one person could hate so much. It consumed him. He lifted his head from the floor, and realized that _silencio_ had been lifted. "I'll NEVER fall for that, Snape! You killed Dumbledore. YOU killed my parents!" Snape laughed, "_Crucio_".

"Never been one for thinking much, Potter? Actions are never as black and white as you make them." Harry fell back to the floor. He tried to stand, clutching the back of a chair. He gripped the chair leg so hard it twisted and broke. Still writhing in pain, he picked up the splinted wood and threw it at Snape.

Snape lazily flicked his wand and it fell to the ground as helplessly as Harry had. "You are still weak. Weak in mind and body. How can my Lord have a proper battle with you if you fall so easily?"

"You fools. You honestly believed that I could turn my back on the Dark Lord? He, who is the greatest master of Legilimency ever known? No, Dumbledore was too gullible. Some might call it," he spit out the word, "_noble_" and continued, "but look at him. Dead because he believed too much in people, in good. People consider him the greatest wizard of our time, yet he never considered testing my mind! Too weak, blinded by his love of . And, his love of_ love_. He even tried to save the student sent to kill him!" Snape laughed a cold, high laugh reminiscent of Voldemort.

He suddenly turned, hearing footsteps on the stairs. "Well, Potter, we'll continue this later, shall we?" And with a turn of his cloak, he had found the door and was leaving London.

Moments later, Hermione and Ron came thundering down the stairs.

0000000000000000000

That morning, still sleepless, Harry re-told Hermione and Ron about the encounter for the third time, while they attempted half-heartily to eat the breakfast Ron had made.

"But what would his proposal be?" Hermione kept asking, to which Ron replied each time, "He's a nutter. Complete nutter. He's just trying to trick us to walk into You-know-who's—"

"Voldemort" Harry corrected automatically.

"Fine, Voldemort's trap," Ron finished, angrily.

Hermione shook her head doubtfully. "It must be more than that. He walked back into the Orders' Headquarters!"

"Let's forget about for now," Harry said, "And get to Godric's Hollow."

Just then there was a pounding at the door. They looked out the curtain. It was Mrs. Weasley. Ron groaned. "She's never going to let us go. Let's not let her in."

Harry smiled and said, "She's a member of the Order- they can all get in without a key. Nothing I can do, mate."

They sat as they allowed Mrs. Weasley to cook them breakfast, and didn't mention they had already eaten, as they all silently agreed Ron's "breakfast" was wanting.

Over breakfast, they learned that Mrs. Weasley too had had a sleepless night, although her night had been spent in tears of joy that her eldest son was so happily married. That and the fact that she'd decided to clean the entire party up that night.

While they ate, Hermione's copy of the Daily Prophet arrived. She hastily opened it and scanned for news, and said, before Ron could ask his usual question, "No, everyone we know is still alive. Although Mrs. Malfoy's requests to find Draco are now a full page long." She showed it to them, and said, "Let's get out of here."

As they rose from their chairs, they heard, "Where do you three think you are going?" Mrs. Weasley said with a frown.

Ron began to shout angrily that he was of age, but Harry firmly pushed him back into his seat.

Harry took a deep breath and stood. "Mrs. Weasley, I really appreciate everything you've done for me these past few years. You've made me feel like part of your family. But," he looked her firmly in the eyes, "Dumbledore gave me a mission. Just me. And I have to complete it."

Mrs. Weasley frowned again. "Harry, you're too young-"

"_No_," Harry emphasized. "He has been training me for this all year. My whole life, really. And I may be young, but it is my job to do. And I will do it, or die trying." At this, Molly's eyes widened, but Harry continued, "I need Ron and Hermione with me while I do this. Please don't force us to go into hiding, and please accept what we have to do. What we were born to do."

Hermione looked at Harry with confidence. It gave him confidence. She said earnestly, "Mrs. Weasley, Ron and I were given an opportunity to help defeat him! Don't make us live knowing we could have made a difference, but weren't allowed to do so."

For once, Mrs. Weasley was speechless, and taking this as a cue, Ron got up, gave her a soft kiss on the cheek, and headed out the door.


	5. Chapter 5: Godric's Hollow

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter. But I do own a stuffed toy Hedwig. Okay, I own two of them…

**A/N**: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up- I went home, and I just can't write without all of my copies of the books.

Thanks so much for the reviews! Delaine, seeing Snape crucio Harry kills me, too. But don't you love him so much as a character?

**Chapter 5: Godric's Hollow  
**

They had chosen to apparate to Godric's Hollow rather than find whether the fireplace was attached to the floo network or to fly. For one thing, as Harry had reminded them, they'd been living as muggles while in hiding, so it was doubtful his parents' house was linked. Not to mention the house had been destroyed. Besides, they didn't want anyone following them, which could certainly happen on the floo or with brooms.

No, apparition was the way to go. As Harry had never been one for flooing anyway, he was quite happy to agree to apparition. Besides, Ron and Harry figured that with all of the apparition they had been doing lately, they would pass their tests with flying colors.

To bad, Hermione had mentioned, that they were missing the tiny fact that they didn't know _where_ in Godric's Hollow the house was.

Although Harry had lived in this house once before, he had no idea where it was. He was hoping that this was not a problem. Last school year, while taking apparition lessons, Wilkie Tywcross had pounded into his head, "Destination, Determination, and Deliberation". Harry was hoping a general destination mixed with a large amount of determination would do the trick. And, he added to himself, he had certainly deliberated on the subject thoroughly.

When dementors had attacked Harry over three years ago, he could certainly hear his parents' last words. If he thought hard enough, he imagined he could even see them. At least, he was determined that he could see them, or rather, the house they had been in, his destination. Harry had been spending the previous few weeks convincing himself that he could indeed see his house. He of course, did not tell Ron and Hermione that he had the slightest bit of doubt in whether or not he could apparate there.

They walked a short way outside of London to an abandoned field. Harry was in charge of directing them, so Hermione and Ron grasped either arm of Harry's, and he concentrated. Destination, he thought, my parent's home in Godric's Hollow.

When they opened their eyes, they had landed on a street, rather than inside of a house. It appeared to be a perfectly normal looking muggle street. Hermione shrieked, "We just magicked ourselves here in broad daylight!" She looked around, frantically. Rather fortunately, it was mid-summer, and the trees were rich with leaves. They couldn't see another soul.

Ron and Harry wisely let Hermione look around frantically until she was sure no one had seen them. Harry used the time to make sure both of Ron's eyebrows were intact. After she calmed down, Harry said, "Shall we go then?"

Harry began to walk forward. "Er… mate, how do you know where the house is?" Ron asked. Harry looked at him, surprised. "I don't know. I just do." As he walked, Harry wondered if this was how Dumbledore had done it in the cave. He just _knew_. Maybe every wizard knows his own family's magic, he mused. Somehow, he thought there was more to it than that.

Presently, he stopped in front of a home. It was a rather normal looking house, slightly larger than the other homes on the street. Yes, Harry thought, it definitely was built by muggles. One look at The Burrow and you could tell it was magic. But this home was, well, normal looking.

To his surprise, Harry felt disappointment. He had been expecting- well; he didn't know what he had been expecting. But this home? It looked as though the Dursleys' would have been comfortable in it.

Looking at the house, it quickly became apparent to them that the house was not completely destroyed, as was commonly assumed. Nor was it hidden from muggles by magic, as were many wizarding buildings.

Harry and Ron expressed surprise at this, but Hermione merely said, "In Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century, it said that the Ministry wanted to keep muggles from disturbing the scene, so when they wiped their memories, they restored the outside of the house." Harry once again appreciated Hermione's love of reading. No wonder she had known that she and Ron would be able to enter the home. She was a walking dictionary.

Once again, when they reached the front door, it opened for Harry. He took a deep breath and stepped inside. They walked into a sitting room. The first thing he noticed was dust. Nearly sixteen years worth of dust. Next to him, Hermione began to sneeze.

Harry slowly turned his head, trying to picture what was under the thick dust. It was a disaster. It looked as though a tornado had swept through the house. The floor was littered with pictures that had fallen off the walls; books lay open on the floor in various states of disarray. Even the couch was upturned. In the space behind the couch, the timbers of the wall were showing.

The three exchanged looks. Ron and Hermione were both silent. Harry understood that he would be the one to speak first. He paused. What had he been expecting, coming here? His mind was curiously blank.

As they stepped further into the room, thoughts began to seize Harry. His mind, opened by the dementors many years ago, took over. He stopped, and closed his eyes. He could see his father, shouting franticly, not masking the panic in his voice, "Lily, take Harry and go! It's Him! Go! I'LL HOLD HIM OFF!"

Harry took two steps more before opening his eyes. "He was standing right here," he said, his voice empty. Nearly sixteen years before, Harry's father had died on the very spot Harry now stood. A shiver passed through all of them. Ron and Hermione still didn't speak.

Harry thought for a moment, and then added, "and, my mum…she ran to get me." Harry paused, looking around. His feet seemed to know the trail, even if his eyes did not.

Harry wordless traced her steps, eyes closed, repeating his mother's voice, "Not Harry! Not Harry! Please, I'll do anything-" Harry stopped. Why had Voldemort given Lily a choice to live? He had clearly come to the house, to kill both Harry and James. But why would the darkest wizard of all time give Lily a choice?

Harry spoke aloud, in a soft voice, "This is where he killed my mum." Once again, he was certain. He opened his eyes as he heard Hermione gasp.

He had stepped inside a room that was entirely scorched black. But, like the calm of a storm, none of the furniture had been touched. The room was perfectly preserved, with the exception of it being pitch black. Harry said slowly, "the Avada Kedavra doesn't do that."

He walked to a wall, to examine the blackness. Harry realized upon closer inspection that it was not scorched by fire, as he'd originally thought. He touched it. It did not come off the wall. Puzzled, he rubbed it harder, still no residue. That was strange.

Looking at it, it reminded Harry of soot. But soot? Soot should rub off of the walls easily. What was it? Next to him, Hermione said softly, "The aurors had never seen a residue like that, before or since."

For an inexplicable reason, at that point, anger finally began to fill Harry. How was it, he thought bitterly, that Hermione knows so much more about my parents than I do?

Harry took a deep breath to calm down. He looked around the room again. He wasn't sure exactly what he had expected, but certainly nothing had prepared him for this. He began to feel caged in, and could feel a scream rising in his throat. He turned his head frantically, not wanting to let it escape.

This is where he should have died.

He vowed, right then and there, that he would kill Voldemort. And enjoy it. The fire was burning in Harry's chest. And _live_ to enjoy it, he added in his head.

For the first time since entering the house, Ron finally found his voice. "What…. what is it?" he asked in utter amazement of the blackened room.

And suddenly, Harry knew, without a doubt, what it was, and answered.

"It is Voldemort." He said slowly, "he couldn't die. But his body was destroyed. That horcrux… his body was the horcrux, and it was destroyed."

Ron and Hermione exchanged looks of amazement with each other, but simply nodded.

He looked down and realized there was a patch of floor directly beneath him covered in sixteen years worth of dust, with no black carbon residue below the dust. He was standing where his mother had fallen. He wordlessly turned and exited the room. The residue stayed firmly put, and no trace of it left on his shoes.

000000000000000000000

Harry had firmly walked out of the house, to the backyard. Wisely, Ron and Hermione did not follow.

000000000000000000000

An hour later, when Harry joined them back inside the house, he had found that Hermione had done some clever spells to lift the dust, and she was carefully sorting through the books found on the floor. She glanced up as he entered. Harry turned away. He hated that look of pity they would give him at times. He snapped, "stop giving me those looks. I know what you are thinking. I'm _fine_." Hermione did her best to rearrange her face, but Harry knew it was still there.

Ron handed Harry a portrait that had once hung on the wall. It had been expertly restored (no doubt by Hermione's wand). It was a photo of Harry's family. Harry forced a smile as they waved at him. "Why don't we put this place back together?" Somehow, he knew that his parents would like that.

Hermione smiled at him, a real smile, and rolled up her sleeves. "Everything?" she asked. "Yeah," Harry smiled again, "Everything."

With a flick of her wrist, Hermione began tackling the holes in the wall. Ron flew the books back up to the shelves. Harry started restoring more pictures. Pictures of Sirius, Remus, and Peter. A baby picture of himself. His grandparents. None of the portraits spoke, however, except to complain about the rough cleaning job they had received.

Within thirty minutes, the room looked back in place, with the exception of the family portrait that Ron had handed Harry. He decided to hang it up at Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

Ron had walked up to the large marble fireplace. "Hey,look- there is floo powder here! Maybe they were linked after all!" He opened the box of powder. It exploded in his face, singeing his eyebrows. Harry and Hermione laughed. "I guess there is a reason for that expiration date, after all," Ron said, joining in on the laughter as he felt his eyebrows.

He placed the box back on the mantle, and looked at the centerpiece, which was empty except for a long, thin metal stand. "Wonder what was in here," he said. "The mantle is too short for a broom." Hermione snorted. You think the only thing people put on their mantle is a broom?" Ron looked at her, and said honestly, "Yes." Harry and Hermione laughed.

"Hey, Hermione, do they teach what muggles put on mantles in Muggle Studies?" Harry asked, trying to keep a straight face.

By this point, Hermione was cracking up, at Ron's complete lack of muggle knowledge, but managed, "No, not in Introduction to Muggle Studies. It must be in Advanced Muggle Studies!" Ron still didn't get what was funny, but finally, between laughs, Harry and Hermione managed to list everything silly muggles put on their mantles.

"fish. Antlers. Weird, lighted things." Hermione giggled extra-hard at that one, picturing her Grandmother's mantle display at home, " Statues of dolphins. Statues of anything, really. Cricket bats. Hockey sticks. Flowers. Guns. Swords. Knives. Trophies. Candles. Dried vegetables. Stockings."

Ron finally caught on, laughed, and exclaimed, "muggles! What nutters. They put their socks on it?"

000000000000000000000

They made quick work of the other rooms in the house before turning to the attic. By this point, the fun was wearing off, and Harry was getting frustrated again. For some reason, he thought he'd find clues here. But he didn't even know what he should be looking for. Harry sighed, and sat down on a crate.

Harry felt helpless. He'd been so sure that he would, somehow, find a clue. Some idea of where to look for the horcruxes. Now he wondered why he'd come up with such a notion. Even Dumbledore didn't know for sure that Voldemort had used horcruxes until this past year. Why would he have had a clue from his parents? But, he reminded himself, R.A.B. knew about at least one horcrux. _Why not his parents?_ They had been members of the Order. They had defied Voldemort three times.

"Cheer up, mate." Ron grinned. "How about you look through _those_ boxes," he said, pointing. They were labeled, "Marauder's Mischief." Hermione rolled her eyes at the label. "Very direct," she said.

A second wind hit Harry and he smiled, "Excellent!" Looking through the old relics they even found a first draft of the Marauder's Map. Harry pocketed it, without really understanding why.

Harry opened a card, and heard a silly poem proclaiming James' love for Lily. He flipped it over and grinned. It was from Sirius, apparently playing a joke on the two. Harry felt the sadness of losing his godfather, but it was controllable now, only a dull ache. He watched the small, animated figure of James sweep up Lily in his arms and kiss her.

But he smiled also because it reminded Harry of the card Ginny had sent him so many years before. Harry missed Ginny. He changed the subject. "Let's go back to the black room."

000000000000000000000

Harry had been feeling drawn to this room all day. He stared down where his mother's body had lain. He let his eyes roam. Even the windows were blackened with the residue. They simply stared, knowing any attempt to clean the room would be futile.

After many minutes, he felt Hermione touch his shoulder. "Let's go," she said softly. Harry nodded. As he left, he noticed a bright long white space on the floor. Although covered in dust, it wasn't as thick as the dust where his mother had fallen. He stopped, and walked back into the room. Kneeling down he said, "Someone has been here already."

They examined the spot. Clearly, something had been on the floor when Voldemort's body had been destroyed. And equally clearly, it had been removed several years after. But who had been here before them?

000000000000000000000

They left the house, and Harry led them to the street. Once again, his feet carried him. They had reached a small cemetery. There, two simple tombs were placed in the center of a small garden. Harry felt the tears welling up. He'd spent so many years suppressing them. This time, they fell freely down his face.

00000000000000000000

That night, back at Number 12, Harry felt more confident. Confident because he now realized he had destroyed two horcruxes- the diary, but also Voldemort's body, as a baby. Never mind that Voldemort had replaced the body. If Harry had done it once, he could do it again.

He rolled over, and slept soundly through the night.


	6. Chapter 6: Birthday Surprises

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing involving Harry Potter except way too many copies of the books.

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews, everyone! I hope you like this chapter, at the end if finally starts to pick up a bit of speed.

**Chapter 6:** Birthday Surprises 

The trip to Godric's Hollow, though thought provoking, did not give the trio a clear direction of what to do next. They decided to continue their focus on locating R.A.B., and so, they spent the next couple of days taking turns at the London Library of Wizardry. Not wanting to be seen by ministry officials, Harry wore his invisibility cloak.

Harry and Hermione were desperately trying to read information on horcruxes- perhaps there would be a clue on how to destroy one, if it were found. Unfortunately, horcruxes seemed to be a topic banned in all of Britain, based on the scanty amount of information they found.

Ron, meanwhile, was combing the wizarding indexes to get a list of wizards with the initials R.A.B. Harry sincerely hoped R.A.B. were real initials and not a nickname. After all of the arguments concerning the half-blood prince's identity, Hermione was keeping fairly silent on what the letters may mean, for which Harry was grateful.

They all felt as though they weren't working hard enough- but really, what were they to do? They read the paper faithfully each morning, although Ron's question was now accompanied by the follow-up question, "Any old Hogwart's stuff being sold?"

0000000000000000000000

They still weren't allowed in the Order's meetings, which they thought was incredibly unfair, as Harry's parents themselves had been hardly a year older than them when _they_ had joined. Ron said angrily one day, "we're going to be doing more than all of them combined!" To which Hermione reminded him, "but they don't know that, and we'd best keep it that way." Ron just shook his head angrily. Harry agreed with Ron, but thought it was probably easier not to be part of the Order- less questions they had to answer.

But they had learnt from the Order that no one had found Snape yet, although Scrimgeour had increased the bounty on Snape's head to 10,000-gallons. Ron was frequently seen grinning at that number, but each time Hermione caught him imagining what he could do with the gallons, she reminded him they had other missions to attend to. "Much more important," she said, "to destroy Voldemort."

Although Harry agreed they must focus on the horcruxes, he certainly wouldn't mind catching Snape. And he would gladly do it for free. Just let him come back and visit. I'll remember my wand this time. Constant Vigilance, he thought. But Snape had not been back to Number 12 since the night of the wedding.

_Why_ had he shown up in the first place? Ron thought it was just to rub it in their faces that Snape was finally done associating with them- but Hermione thought it must be more. "Snape is too smart to risk being caught just to brag," she had said. Harry didn't know what to think. He certainly didn't put it past Snape to point out that he was a much better wizard than Harry, Snape would do that even when they thought he was part of the Order. But he did agree it was odd to walk right into the headquarters of the Order when he was a wanted man.

0000000000000000000000

When Harry awoke on the morning of his birthday he could smell breakfast cooking already. Food that smelled that good could only mean one thing: Mrs. Weasley was here. She had, amazingly, left the three of them alone, except when she was here on Order business, although Harry suspected Arthur may have had a say in the matter, as it was a very un-Mrs. Weasley thing to do. But she probably couldn't keep herself away on a day that was so important in her mind- Harry becoming a man. Harry jumped out of bed, gave the portrait of Nigellus a jolly wave, which he as usual ignored, and wandered down the stairs.

"Happy Birthday, Harry," Mrs. Weasley said warmly. "I hope you don't mind that I came, but I couldn't let you eat a cold breakfast on your birthday!" As Harry had been cooking for years with the Dursleys, he knew perfectly well he hadn't been planning on a cold breakfast- indeed, after Ron's attempts at breakfast, Harry was nearly always the one to cook their meals, although Hermione's cooking wasn't too bad, once you got over the fact every meal she made was dentist-approved.

Harry still hadn't attempted to ask Dobby to join them at the house for a number of reasons. For once, he figured Dobby didn't know where Number 12, Grimmauld Place was. Dumbledore was the secret-keeper, and he couldn't be giving out the secret anymore, although Harry wondered if the portrait of Dumbledore in the Head Office might still be able to give out the secret. Of course, Dobby was a house-elf at Hogwarts, so perhaps, he "belonged" to Dumbledore, although he was free, and could bring himself there. But Harry really hadn't asked because he figured he'd probably have to call Kreacher back to pass the message on.

"Of course I don't mind, Mrs. Weasley," he could say honestly, "Thank you so much for coming." Harry still wasn't used to being, well, loved, on his birthday, but it was a feeling he most certainly knew he could get used to.

Hermione was already up. "Happy Birthday, Harry," she said, hugging him.

00000000000000000000

Ron came ambling down the stairs five minutes later, stomach growling. "Thanks, mum!"

He slid into his seat next to Hermione, and the four began to eat. Mrs. Weasley presently said, "Now, I know you three have a mission, but you can take one night off for a birthday party, can't you?" Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged glances. Obviously, no one in the Order thought their mission was that important. That was clear from the fact they weren't allowed in the meetings. But given that it had been Dumbledore who had given them their task, the members of the Order had reluctantly let the trio go on with their business.

Harry didn't have much of a heart for a party. He hadn't had much of a heart for anything but the library lately- ugh, he was turning into Hermione! But he felt guilty not accepting, especially considering they hadn't been accomplishing much at the library, so the three agreed to show up to the Burrow later in the day.

After saying yes, Harry had a pit in his stomach, but Ron said firmly, "Harry, my family is all in the Order. They are always in danger, and you showing up isn't going to make one whit of a difference,' which, although not exactly reassuring, cheered Harry up very slightly. He just couldn't handle being the cause of any more deaths.

The daily prophet owl came soaring in. "Anyone we know dead?" Ron asked. Hermione opened it and found that the inferi had ravaged a city south of London, but no one they knew had died. Draco still hasn't been found, and no Hogwarts relics were being sold. They all sighed, _how_ were they going to find these objects?

After breakfast, they planned to adjourn to the drawing room. Harry always remembered this room fondly, as it was the room he helped clean the first time he had arrived at Number 12, Grimmauld Place. Then, it had been full of dust, doxies, a boggart, and plenty of dark objects that Kreacher had continuously tried to steal.

But now, they had set it up as sort of a "DA headquarters" (as they had continued to call themselves, since they weren't allowed to be members of the Order). Hermione had performed a tricky charm to allow only the three of them to pass through the doorway, although Harry wasn't sure if it was simply out of respect for the trio that members of the Order didn't pass through. On one hand, if Hermione was that talented of a witch, he had high hopes for their personal mission, but on the other hand, if the members of the Order couldn't break a charm placed by a barely legal witch, then the wizarding world might be in more trouble than he suspected.

Regardless, they had set the room up with the few clues they had found in the library, many items they had purchased from Fred and George, and the picture Harry had taken from his old home. His parents waved at him as each time the three entered the room to discuss their plans for the day. It gave Harry confidence.

But before they reached the drawing room, three tawny owls arrived, each carrying letters with the Hogwarts seal. "Oh, I'd forgotten about our letters," Harry said. They took the letters from the owls, who flew off. Hermione was looking at hers with longing.

Harry grinned. He knew she wanted to see that Head Girl badge inside. "Go ahead, Hermione. It doesn't hurt to look."

She smiled. "No, it doesn't, does it?" And she picked it up and carefully opened it. The shiny gold badge fell to the table.

Harry and Ron couldn't help themselves. They tore their own letters open, too. But they weren't quite so lucky. Neither Harry nor Ron received the Head Boy badge. This surprised Harry slightly. Harry knew Dumbledore thought Harry had too much to do, but he'd thought perhaps, McGonagall, who was still the temporary Headmistress, would have given it to him. A small voice reminded Harry that his father had been Head Boy. He shook it off. He wasn't going back, anyway. He had, of course, retained his position as captain of the quidditch team.

Ron carefully gathered up his and Harry's letters (Hermione clutched hers to her chest and refused to give it up-she claimed the book list might be useful) and said, "Since we aren't going back to school we might as well chuck em-"

"WHAT?" Mrs. Weasley roared from the kitchen sink. "What do you mean by that?" Ron stuttered something inaudible. "I will NOT have three of my boys be dropouts from school!" She resembled an angry bear. All three backed against the wall.

They gulped, looking at each other. Harry noticed they seemed to actually be looking at _him_. He knew without a doubt he'd rather be facing Voldemort than explain to Mrs. Weasley why her youngest son was no longer attending school. By the look Mrs. Weasley was giving him, he wished he had told someone else about the Horcruxes- because, if looks could kill, the secret would have died right then.

A moment passed in silence. Mrs. Weasley was still glaring at each of them, her soapy hands firmly on her hips. "WELL? WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELVES?"

Finally, Harry spoke up. "Mrs. Weasley, our mission may last for a long time. Er…we don't have time to go to school." He paused and looked at Mrs. Weasley's face. Oh, this was not going well at all. Even _he_ wasn't convinced by this lackluster description of the importance of his mission. "Er, …well, we have to do something, you see-"

"What THINGS?" Mrs. Weasley said as she advanced on them. She took a short breath, "Hermione dear, you seem to be sensible, and Head Girl! Why don't you leave for a bit while I speak with these two," and she continued voice louder, "Nothing you two will be doing-"

But Hermione, still clutching her letter, found her voice and said, "three. I'm leaving, too."

Mrs. Weasley expression went blank and she stared, her mouth slightly open. "Her-Hermione? Are you okay?" And she went over and placed her hand on Hermione's forehead. She mused, "Not a fever. What's wrong?" A look of comprehension suddenly crossed Mrs. Weasley's face. " This is a joke, right?" She frowned. "You three know how much I worry! HOW DARE YOU JOKE LIKE THAT AT A TIME LIKE THIS!"

Ron took this out and said, "You're right, mum, it was wrong of us-"

But Hermione smacked his arm and softly said, "Mrs. Weasley, it isn't a prank."

Harry wished he could disappear. Oh, she was going to kill him. Maybe he should put on his invisibility cloak. Fortunately, Hermione continued to speak, "Mrs. Weasley, I know this is upsetting-"

"UPSETTING!" Mrs. Weasley sputtered, but Hermione continued firmly, "But we can discuss it later-"

"LATER? LATER! WE'LL DISCUSS IT NOW!" Molly screamed, her arms flailing and bubbles floating around her. But Hermione wasn't backing down. She shot Harry and Ron a dirty look for not backing her up and continued, "Yes, later. Or else Ron and Harry will be late to their apparition test. We need to floo to the Ministry now."

Urgh, Harry thought. Dealing with the ministry was about as pleasant as the conversation he was currently having with Mrs. Weasley.

But Hermione walked to the fireplace, threw some floo powder on the fire, and stepped inside, yelling, "The Ministry of Magic." Harry and Ron exchanged a quick glance with each other, then at Mrs. Weasley. "Er, sorry about this, Mrs. Weasley," Harry stumbled. "But we'll see you tonight at Harry's party," Ron finished, and they both quickly stepped through the fireplace.

000000000000000000000

They found Hermione, who was having her wand weighed at a counter. Harry gave her a brief look of thanks, and Ron and Harry quickly submitted their own wands. They were told to proceed to the 5th floor. Hermione continued to accompany them, although she kept whispering advice that started with the letter D, and so they wished she hadn't. Harry wore his invisibility cloak as they walked.

When they reached the 5th floor, Harry took off his cloak. They sat down to wait outside the testing agency door. There were two other wizards Harry didn't know waiting, which surprised him, as they figured most all wizards their age in London would have been at Hogwarts.

Ron and Harry were both perfectly confident they could do it, but, still, their nerves were beginning to set in, especially as the wait got longer. Ron was getting particularly agitated, and finally shouted, "Just can it already, Hermione!" She huffed, but fell silent.

The two unknown wizards gave Ron a look of thanks. Ron grinned.

Presently, the four of them were called in to take their tests. There were two wizards administrating the test. Both seemed rather green for the job, and over-enthusiastic. They reminded Harry a bit of a male-version of Tonks, but he prayed they weren't quite as clumsy.

The first wizard, whom Harry promptly forgot the name of, explained that they would be apparating to the entrance of St. Mungo's. This location had been chosen after a number of witches and wizards had splinched themselves and the healers had to be called, anyway. This saved everyone involved time, the wizard laughed. Harry looked at Ron, who had turned slightly green, and was touching his eyebrows. The butterflies increased in Harry's midsection.

The first administrating wizard apparated ahead of them to St. Mungo's. And then the remaining wizard said, "In alphabetical order, then. Go ahead. And don't forget, Destination, Determination, Deliberation!" They all gritted their teeth.

The two wizards Harry and Ron didn't know went first. It seems as though they had passed- at least, they didn't leave any body parts behind. Then it was Harry's turn.

He thought about the entrance to St. Mungo's and with a swish of his robe- he was there! He'd done it! The other three were standing at the entrance and politely clapped. A moment later, Ron appeared, eyebrows intact. They had passed!

The administrating wizard asked them all to touch an empty tin can, and they were instantly portkey-ed back to the administration room at the Ministry.

Ron rushed through the doors, shouting, "Hermione, Hermione! We did it!" and she jumped up, saying, "That's great!" before giving Ron a small kiss on the cheek. Ron blushed a brilliant red color. Then, looking at Harry, Hermione blushed, too.

Harry grinned at them both. "Come on. I know you are snogging!" Hermione's face turned an even deeper red, but Ron grinned back, proud. "Sorry we didn't tell you, mate." Hermione squeaked in embarrassment.

The sentence caught Harry off guard- why _hadn't_ they told him? His happiness for them suddenly turned to suspicion and anger, although he attempted to remain calm and forced his grin with a, "How about you tell me ALL about it when we get back?" Hermione's face was positively purple by that point, and she purposely changed the subject. "Hey Ron, do you want to visit your Dad while we're here?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "Are you crazy? Mum's probably already told him we're leaving Hogwarts. Let's just go back."

They began, slowly, walking to the entrance of the Ministry. Harry insisted on putting his invisibility cloak back on as they walked through the corridors. Deciding to take the long way home, just in case Mrs. Weasley was still there, they exited through the phone booth. As they were about to apparate, they heard a small pop and turned.

"Neville!" Hermione exclaimed. "How are you doing?" Neville grinned. "Great, Gran and I came today so I could take my apparition test!" They noticed Neville spoke and stood confidently. He had changed so much since the DA! His Gran was smiling, proud of Neville.

They wished him luck, and as they were leaving, Harry noticed a bit of gold poking out of a fold in Neville's shirt. "Neville, you've been made Head Boy?" Next to him, Harry felt rather than saw Ron's mouth drop. He stepped on his foot, and Ron quickly shut his mouth.

Hermione gave a genuine squeal. "Neville, that is so great!" Neville blushed, but his Gran just smiled even more broadly and patted his back.

000000000000000000000

Harry was surprised with himself. Two years ago, when Ron, not Harry, had been made prefect, he had been angry. Upset. Confused. Jealous, even. But, though he may have been confused about Neville being selected, he only felt happiness. Even since learning of the prophecy, Harry had felt closer to Neville. Their lives were more closely linked than Neville would ever know. Neville had done better than anyone else in the DA, and Harry was constantly being surprised by how quickly he learned new spells.

Surprised at his acceptance of Neville getting the badge Harry so wanted, Harry mused that maybe he had become of age, after all.

0000000000000000000000

They arrived back at Headquarters and settled into the drawing room. Hermione pulled out some parchment to write to her parents. She had confided in the two of them that she missed them, but didn't want to put them in danger, and so she didn't visit them. Harry understood her perfectly.

Harry relaxed on a couch and began imagining what his birthday party would be like that evening. He was worried about everyone's reactions- but especially Ginny's. What would she say, knowing he wasn't coming back to Hogwarts?

Harry heard a snide cough. He looked up, surprised. Phineas Nigellus had moved from his portrait in Harry's bedroom to a small figure of a woman in the drawing room. He coughed again, to make sure he had Harry's attention. The former headmaster then read from a piece of parchment, "The new Headmistress requests your visit in one week's time at the Head Office at four in the afternoon for biscuits and teas and a lively discussion. She also adds that this is not a request, but an order, and, as we are at war, please arrive in a non-fashionable and thoroughly well-hidden manner." Nigellus, glad to be done with his duty, rolled his eyes and walked out of the portrait.

Ron grinned. "Sure sounds like a message from McGonagall. Let's take the passage from Hogsmeade. That would be a well-hidden manner. I guess she doesn't want us to walk up to the front door and announce our arrival."

Harry nodded. "I wonder what she wants."

Ron groaned. "Mum's probably told her we're leaving, too."

"Well, we'll find out soon enough," Hermione said briskly, as she put the finishing touches on her letter. Harry smiled politely. "Finished? Good, now you two have to tell me when you started snogging!" Hermione blushed again.

Harry may have been priding himself with dealing with Neville's Head Boy-ship in an adult manner, but he was still slightly annoyed that Ron and Hermione couldn't have just told him they were together. But he was surprised when he heard Ron say, "Well, mate, we didn't want you to feel left out." Harry rolled his eyes, but appreciated the thoughtfulness of this.

"Why would I have felt left out?" He asked. Ron stuttered, something about Ginny, and suddenly Harry decided he didn't want to know anymore. Harry felt his stomach flop. He shouldn't be alone right now! She should be with him. Then Ron and Hermione wouldn't be keeping secrets from him. It was all Voldemort's fault. Harry felt the familiar anger building up.

Hermione still didn't speak but simply blushed further. Harry found this odd- she certainly had been bold at Hogwarts when she was trying to make Ron jealous. But now that she had him, she was so quiet. Girls, Harry thought. Can't ever understand them. Deciding he forgave them for the moment, at least, Harry decided to concentrate on the anger and said, "well, why don't we put a few hours in at the library before we head over to the Burrow?" Hermione gave him a grateful smile and jumped up. As she jumped up, she knocked a table against the wall.

"Opps," Hermione said nervously. Just then, the picture of Harry and his parents fell from the wall. "Oh, no, Harry, I'm so sorry!" She rushed to the picture to pick it up.

"I'm sure it is okay," Harry said, taking it from her. He turned it over to hang it back up. The backing of the picture had torn slightly. "Hey, what's this?" he muttered. A piece of paper was sticking out of the backing. Harry pulled it out carefully, opened it, and quickly skimmed it, his mouth wide open. Wordlessly, he handed it to Hermione, who said, "It's just a piece of blank paper. What's the big deal?"

Harry looked at her, astonished. "You can't see it?" Ron grabbed the sheet of paper and held it up. "Yup, definitely blank" he said.

Harry just said slowly, "it is a note to me. From my dad…he knows R.A.B."


	7. Chapter 7: Anger and Love

**Disclaimer: I own nothing involving Harry Potter except for a bunch of fun action figures.**

**A/N:** Thanks so much for the reviews, everyone! I love hearing them, good or bad.

Mudbloodpotter05: Do you really think I'd answer those questions:) Thanks so much for the compliment, because that is really what I am trying to do.

As for all of the R.A.B. questions, I just went with my gut, and you'll all see my "gut" in a minute. Did you all agree? (MeTaMoRpHoSiS gUrL, I know you said you had a guess)

Actually, the "big" revelation idea I had for this story still hasn't come quite yet- it'll happen around the same time Hogwarts starts up- but when it does finally happen, I'd really like to hear what people think. Some (okay, all) of my friends think the theory is crazy, but I really like it, so I hope you all do, too.

0000000000

**Chapter 7: Anger and Love**

Harry held the letter from his father in his hands, trembling. A real clue! Finally! Better than a clue. Hermione said impatiently, "Well, read it to us already!" Harry nodded, and began,

_Harry,_

_If these words are visible to you, it means I have passed. I love you so dearly, and am sorry I am not here to be with you. I have confidence Sirius will be taking great care of you, however. _

_Unfortunately, I am writing this to pass on information that will make your life more difficult. As you know, your mother and I are aware that Voldemort is after our family. We have Snape's word that he will do everything to protect us from his side._

Harry stopped reading long enough to say, "stupid Git, crucio-ing me," before continuing,

_Yet we know someone in the Order is passing information on our whereabouts and actions. Thus, we have placed ourselves in hiding, even from the Order of the Phoenix. I have been working in utmost secret with Regulus Black. Reggie is still believed to be a death eater by all on our side- but he has given me, for I keep this work secret even from your mother, the knowledge to defeat You-Know-Who. And it is my duty to pass it on to you- because prophecy says that you are the one to defeat him._

_He has created horcruxes- torn his soul in order to have eternal life. To defeat You-Know-Who, we must destroy these horcruxes. I have no idea how many he has created, or will create. But Reggie, who discovered this as a death eater, has since passed, leaving the knowledge with me alone. He found one horcrux- it had been a locket owned by Salazar Slytherin himself. Black destroyed it, but the death eaters took his life shortly after. _

_I am sorry I can give you no more help other than this- but you must find the horcruxes- confide in Dumbledore- perhaps he can help. I am sorry I have placed such a burden on you. This picture was found on Regulus' body, perhaps it may lead you in your search._

_Your mother and I will always love you dearly,_

_Dad_

_P.S. I'm so sorry I wasn't around to watch your first quidditch match- I bet you are brilliant….it's in your blood._

"Reggie?" snorted Ron.

Hermione shushed him, "Of course! BRILLIANT! R.A.B. is Regulus Black! Remember? Sirius said once, 'he got in so far, then panicked about what he was being asked to do and backed out'. But everyone must have been wrong! He must have been right in the inner circle as a spy, and someone just found out about what he was doing!"

Instinctively, they all turned to the tapestry baring the words, "The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black" Ron looked at it and groaned. "All those hours at the library and it was right here!"

Harry had remained silent since reading the letter aloud. Hermione looked at him, and understood immediately what was passing through his mind.

"Oh, Harry," Hermione gushed, running up to him and giving him a hug, "I'm so sorry about your parents."

Harry backed away from the hug. "I'd never thought about it before," he said slowly.

"What, mate?" Ron asked, confused. Harry answered, "My mum…Voldemort gave her the choice to live. But my dad, he wasn't given the choice. Why hadn't I ever wondered that before? It is because my dad _knew_. Why didn't he tell anyone else?" Anger erupted in Harry's voice. "He could have told Dumbledore about the horcruxes back then! It has been sixteen years! We could have stopped him before we'd even started Hogwarts!" Harry was livid. "WHY WOULD HE HAVE KEPT IT A SECRET?" he screamed, pounding his fists on the table. It snapped in half, the family portrait falling to the floor.

Hermione said timidly, "Harry, _we're_ keeping it a secret, too." Harry's foot stopped in mid-kick; he'd been aiming for the family photo. He turned and looked at her. "BECAUSE Dumbledore, the greatest wizard of all time, TOLD us to!"

Ron stood, looking anxiously between the two. He was at a loss for words.

Hermione stood tall. "Harry James Potter! Your father was trying to protect the world, just like we are. You refuse to be with Ginny, to protect her. Your father refused to tell your mother, TO PROTECT HER! You're just like him, and you probably wouldn't have told Dumbledore if you were in his place, either!"

Harry shook angrily, and stormed out of the room, kicking things as he went. He grabbed his broom, slid on his invisibility cloak, and left.

0000000000000000000000

Harry hadn't flown in a long time. He simply felt the breeze, and he wished he could forget his argument with Hermione. He tried to reason through it, but he couldn't help blaming his father. He thought back to the images he'd seen in the pensieve. He'd always been so cocky- why was this any different? Pestering Snape just because he was bored. But then, his behavior only harmed Snape- now, now? His father's actions may have cost Harry everyone- his mother, even Dumbledore. Harry was shaking, but it wasn't from the cold wind.

Every person James mentioned in that letter was dead! And it was probably all his fault. If only he'd told Dumbledore so long ago. But no, his ego was always too strong. Snape had been right about his father. Snape! Well, Harry admitted that Snape wasn't dead, _yet_. Harry screamed out loud, "Because he is a death eater!" Several birds flying nearby squawked at him.

How could his father trust him? They hated each other. Why? His father seemed to trust Snape? And Dumbledore? And they were both "DEAD" Harry screamed again.

Harry flew until his fingers were numb and he was soaking wet from the clouds. Reluctantly, he returned back to Number 12, Grimmauld Place. He had no where else to go. He had hoped to cool down, but had instead simply worn himself out.

0000000000000000000000

He walked back into the drawing room, dripping wet. Ron and Hermione weren't there. A large sheet of parchment had been posted on the wall reading:

Body

Ring

Diary

Locket

Cup

Ravenclaw/Gryffindor

Nagini

New Body

The first four had been crossed off. Harry forced a small smile. Four more to go, he thought, although that thought was quickly followed by anger in the fact that the Dumbledore should have had the chance to do this years ago. Then he, Harry, would be living a normal life, and about to celebrate his birthday with his girlfriend and would be looking forward to his senior year of school. And the name "Voldemort" would only be a memory. _And_, maybe, just maybe, Harry's parents would be alive. He would have never had to endure life with the Dursleys. But no, Harry was stuck with a cursed scar on his forehead and the biggest challenge in the world.

He was about to finish destroying the table he had broken earlier when Ron and Hermione walked in. Hermione snapped at him, "Grow up and pull yourself together." Ron and Harry looked at her in amazement. Harry decided to abandon the table kicking, but continued to sulk as he slipped onto the couch, staring at her in anger. Hermione was obviously in a dangerous mood, and as much as Harry wanted a fight, he knew fighting with her would not bring the solution he wanted. He grinned inwardly at this revelation. He _was_ an adult today, after all.

She said smoothly, "That's better. Now, re-read this letter and I'll write it down so Ron and I can have a copy of it."

Harry had forgotten he was the only one who could read the letter. He sighed, but obeyed Hermione's order, though with gritted teeth. After he finished, rather reluctantly, he felt slightly calmer. His dad _had_ only been trying to protect the people he loved. As he re-read one sentence, curiously got the better of him.

_This picture was found on Regulus' body, perhaps it may lead you in your search._

Harry flipped the paper over, but there was no picture. He guiltily picked the family portrait up from the floor, where he had tried to kick it earlier. He turned it over, looking for the picture his father had mentioned. Ripping the back of the paper further, it fluttered out. It was small, and appeared to be taken with a muggle camera, as the two people in it did not move. The first person was a man with dark black hair and gray eyes; clearly Regulus Black- the resemblance to Sirius was striking. He was standing next to a thin woman with long and lanky light brown hair and large rounded gray eyes. Harry looked at her closely. Although he felt as though he should know her, he had no idea who she was.

He showed the picture to Ron and Hermione. Neither knew who she was, either. All three were glad for the new mystery that had temporarily stopped Harry's anger.

Just then, Ron looked at his watch and cried, "We're late for your party!"

00000000000000000000000

They apparated to The Burrow immediately, though they all felt they should stay and study the picture.

"Just two hours," they promised each other. Remembering their argument with Mrs. Weasley that morning, they walked to the front door with a bit of trepidation. Mr. Weasley answered the door. "Who's there? Declare yourself!" Ron groaned. "It's just us, Dad. Your son, Ronald Weasley, and his two best friends, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger." "And how do you prove your identity?" Mr. Weasley asked. Ron rolled his eyes and said, "We just told Mum we weren't going back to Hogwarts. Now let us in."

But Hermione asked back, "And how do we know that you are who you say you are?" You could tell by his voice that Arthur was thrilled someone took him seriously, "Because I collect plugs!" The door opened and they stepped inside.

Mr. Weasley shook Harry's hand solemnly. "Congratulations on becoming an adult, Harry. And I heard you two passed your apparition test today!" He gave Ron a jolly slap on the back. "Both very worthy causes of celebration."

"Er…thanks," Harry said cautiously. "And, er…Mrs. Weasley? How is she doing?" He could tell from Mr. Weasley's voice all was not well at The Burrow.

"Ah, well, she still isn't too happy," Mr. Weasley said, lowering his eyes and the jubilation leaving his words. Harry asked, "And what about you, Mr. Weasley?" Arthur paused and said simply, "Harry, I trust you. You have saved Ginny, Ron, and myself. Dumbledore trusted you. I'm not…happy…that you are leaving school, but I trust your judgement in making this decision." He added, slightly sternly, "But I would like it if you three finished up your schooling at some point in your life. And it would make it easier on all of us if you would tell us what your mission is."

Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged looks of amazement and smiled. Hermione spoke for them all when she said, "Thank you so much, Mr. Weasley. That means a lot to have your support."

Harry added, "But it is Dumbledore's orders that we tell no one about what we are doing." Still, never before had Harry had such a strong urge to share what their mission was. It felt incredible to know someone out there trusted him- trusted him with his son's life.

Briefly, Harry wondered if perhaps Regulus had put his father through similar vows. Harry began to feel slightly guilty about his display of anger earlier.

None of them acknowledged the "finishing up your schooling" statement Mr. Weasley had included. Harry really didn't believe he'd make it through the war, and didn't want to give Mr. Weasley a promise he may have to break.

Fortunately, Mr. Weasley seemed to not notice this pause, and continued, "Molly has decided not to mention it tonight, although I don't think she is done speaking with you three."

The three nodded in understanding. "So," Ron spoke up, "Who's here today?"

Mrs. Weasley said, "Well, Molly invited Remus and Tonks, and then just the twins and Ginny. Charlie is back in Romania, and Bill and Fleur are still on their honeymoon." As usual, no mention of Percy was made. Although he had briefly appeared at the wedding, his abrupt departure had once again made the name "Percy" a banned word in the Weasley household.

"Just as a warning, Molly told everyone that you aren't planning on returning to Hogwarts. Fred, George, and Tonks have been trying to cheer Ginny up, but she hasn't left her room since she heard the news. I think she's going to miss you three at school."

A loud explosion from upstairs, followed by Mrs. Weasley's booming voice, confirmed what Mr. Weasley had just said. Harry sighed. He just wasn't any good dealing with girls. It was his fault Ginny was upstairs, probably crying. W_hy _did he always make girls cry? He should probably go up there and talk to her, he thought. He headed toward the stairs, desperately trying to think of something to cheer her up.

He passed Mrs. Weasley in the hall. She sniffed and turned her head. Great, Harry thought. I've got both of the Weasley women upset with me. He hoped, when it was all said and done, they would both forgive him. Or at least speak fondly of him at his funeral.

He met Tonks on the way up the stairs. "Wotcher, Harry," she said. "I wouldn't go up there right now, she bat-bogy hexed Fred and George. I only just escaped." She grinned, obviously enjoying the sight of the twins with bats flapping on their faces. "I had to set 'em right, though. Molly wouldn't have been too pleased if I'd left her sons like that. But you've got your hands full with that girl."

Harry smiled and thanked her, but said he'd take his chances. He noticed Fred and George were no where to be seen, and knocked on Ginny's door. She issued, "knock again and I'll curse something else!" Harry decided the best course of action would be to push open her door, as he didn't want "something else" cursed.

George's head popped out on the staircase and he said, in a very serious voice, "Give her hell from us, Potter," before ducking away. Harry had to chuckle, and he pushed opened her door. She was sitting on her bed, wand out and menacing. "Oh, it's you." Her voice lost some of its anger.

Harry took this as a good sign and walked in. Although he'd been visiting The Burrow for years, he'd never been in Ginny's room. It was a disaster. Robes were strewn across the floor; spell books were scattered everywhere. Arnold was resting in a corner on what looked like Ron's old dress robes. She had a green floor, and painted clouds on the blue ceiling. "I never knew your room looked like this," Harry said in surprise. Well, he wasn't surprised about the mess, he admitted to himself. Just the, well..girly.. ceiling.

Ginny just looked at him. "I guess there is a lot of stuff about each other we don't know." Her voice shook, "Harry, I…I'm in love with you. How could you not tell me you were leaving?" Her voice was now laced with anger. "How do you think I feel learning it from MY MOTHER! I thought I meant something more than this to you!" Harry thought she sounded remarkably like her mum when she was angry, although he rather wisely kept that comment to himself.

Harry's heart sank as Ginny continued to yell. He hadn't realized he would be hurting her. That was the last thing he wanted to do. Could he never do anything right? Sirius was gone. Dumbledore was dead. Mrs. Weasley wouldn't speak to him, and the girl he loved had now fallen silent and was looking like she was doing her very best to hold back her tears.

He sighed and cautiously walked into the room. He sat down tentatively on the edge of her bed. "Ginny, I'm so sorry," he said, grief in his voice. "I'm doing everything I can _not_ to hurt you, and I keep messing up." He shook his head. "How can I ever save the world when I can't even keep the person I love from crying?" Ginny managed a smile, "I haven't quite cried yet." But her face was still contorted in pain.

Harry took her shoulders firmly in his hands and looked in her eyes. "Ginny, I should have told you first. You are right. I'm so sorry." His voice cracked. Oh, not now, he prayed to himself. He couldn't cry in front of Ginny.

Ginny looked back at him and sighed, her anger dissipating. "Harry, I should be the one who is sorry. I told you I would accept your decision." She smiled a rather suggestive grin, "at least until you-know-who is gone. It isn't fair of me to suddenly ask you to include me." She smiled again. "I'm just as strong as you are, and I can handle it. Just remember it is only a temporary situation until he's gone. Then I'm right back in your life." She crossed her arms confidently, her face relaxed.

Harry was floored with emotions. How does she do that, he wondered? Somehow, just talking to Ginny made Harry feel as though all was right in the world again. Just looking at Ginny confirmed it. Harry leaned back against the wall and held her hand.

"You know, Tonks was up here earlier," Ginny said casually. "Oh, yeah? And was she giving you any advice on how to seize me back?" Harry teased. Ginny grinned at him. "You're lucky it is me you are in love with. Look at poor professor Lupin. He spent a whole year telling Tonks she couldn't be with him because it was too dangerous- and now they are planning a wedding!"

"What?" Harry jumped off the bed. "They are getting married?" Ginny bobbed her head. "Yeah, _she_ proposed to him last week. Awfully quick, don't you think?"

But Harry knew better. Everyone married quickly last time Voldemort was in power. This time around was no different.

He pulled Ginny up from the bed and gave her a hug. He placed his hand under her chin, and tilted it toward his lips. But Ginny said softly, "Please don't." Harry's heart dropped, but she added with a smile, "we don't want my family thinking I'm some sort of a scarlet woman, do we?"

00000000000000000000

Harry led Ginny down the stairs, where she stared at everyone defiantly, challenging them to question her earlier tantrum. No one did, although Fred and George were wearing identical headless hats, so no one could see their reactions toward Ginny's appearance. Of course, Harry mused, Ginny does seem to have quite a few tantrums. Must come with having so many brothers.

Harry rushed up to Lupin and pounded him on the back. "Congratulations, Professor!" he said heartily. Lupin blushed just like Hermione. Tonks was bouncing around the other side of the room telling everyone who could hear just how she proposed.

"Well he always gets so depressed around the time of the full moon, you know? And tries to shut me out- Literally! He puts a curse on his door!" Well, this time around, I waited- the curse always starts at dark, and so, five minutes before it got dark, I started pounding on his door. He opened it up, just a tiny crack, panicked when he saw me, and told me to go! Can you believe that?" She shook her head as if she was in disbelief. "Yelling at the woman he loves." Remus just laughed and blushed slightly.

Tonks continued, "And so, I just said, well, I'm not going until you answer a question. And Remus, of course, wanted to get it done with as soon as possible so he could transform- you know it is much more painful now that he doesn't have access to the wolfsbane potion-" At this point in the story, Remus flushed. "But I wanted to make him a bit happier. So I simply whipped up some roses and said, "Will you marry me?" And I thought he was going to actually open the door the whole way!"

Her eyes widened at that, as it would have clearly made the story more exciting. But she finished, with a hint of sadness, " But he didn't." Her voice picked back up her excitement and she continued, " He just narrowed his eyes, said, 'yes' and slammed the door shut!" Everyone cracked up at that point in the story, as Tonks imitated her reaction.

Tonks smiled. "And so, the next day, he came up to _my_ door, and said, 'I'm not going until you answer a question." And _he_ pulled out roses, and said, "Will you marry me?" And so I decided to say 'yes' and slammed the door shut!" Everyone laughed again. Tonks quickly added gleefully, "But I opened it back up and let him in."

Harry didn't trust himself to look at Ginny throughout the story. He noticed Ron and Hermione blushing each time they glanced at each other. All the talk about love made him think about Dumbledore. "Focus, Potter," he muttered to himself.

00000000000000000000000

After they ate their dinner and cake, the trio decided to leave. They really wanted to search Regulus Blacks' (Harry couldn't bring himself to call him 'Reggie') room for more clues about the horcruxes. So they left amid lots of laughter and apparated back to Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

"Which room was Regulus'?" Ron wondered. Harry stopped to think. "Well, Sirius never mentioned him much, did he? Do either of you remember cleaning a room Sirius was extra foul about?" He watched as they both concentrated, thinking.

"Well," Hermione said finally, "There is an entire floor we didn't touch. If I remember correctly, it is up there."

"Excellent," Ron said. "Um..where's the door to that floor?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't you remember?" Ron grumbled under his breath, "obviously not," but fortunately, only Harry heard him. Hermione continued, "It is blocked by that tapestry at the end of the hall. By the blank look on Ron's face, Harry knew that school wasn't the only thing Hermione was better at paying attention to.

They raced up the stairwell to the tapestry. It was large and red and had various images of people being tortured. Screams could be heard by several of the victims. Harry had a sneaking suspicion the people being tortured were muggles. He looked at it in disgust and was about to pull it away when Hermione shouted, "WAIT!" Harry dropped his hand, "what?"

"There is an incantation we have to say." She stopped. Harry couldn't help himself. "Well? What is it?"

Hermione shot him a dirty look. "Obviously, I'm trying to remember it. Sirius had said it was an old family saying…"

Harry suggested, remembering the family tree in the drawing room, "The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black?" Nothing happened, although a few sparks shot out of the tapestry in a menacing way.

"Toujours pur?" he asked cautiously.

The tapestry fell silent and slowly rolled itself up. "Brilliant, Harry!" Ron congratulated him. They waited for it to finish. It was completely dark through the doorway.

They muttered in unison, "_lumos,_" and stepped through. "AHGH!" Ron and Hermione yelled as they were thrown back against the wall. The tapestry abruptly fell back down, creating a barrier between Harry and his friends.

"Harry?" Ron asked through the wall. "Are you okay?" Harry answered back "yeah," through the screams being emitted by the tapestry and could hear Hermione fuming as she slapped her hand to her forehead, "I completely forgot! Sirius said only members of the family could go through the doorway."

Harry, sick of hearing the muffled voices, muttered, "Toujours pur" and (rather fortunately, the password must be the same each way, Harry thought) the tapestry opened to reveal his friends. They were still sprawled out on the ground, their hair sticking straight up. They reminded Harry exactly how Piers Polkiss looked once when he stuck his finger in an electrical outlet after Dudley dared him to do it.

Stepping out, he asked, "So only I can go through the doorway?" Hermione shook her head. "No, we just need your 'permission' to go through."

Harry looked at her. "My permission? What, do I write the tapestry a note?" he said sarcastically.

Ron picked up at this point. "I remember- we just have to be touching you." Harry rolled his eyes. "Not very good 'permission'. You could just force me through then." Ron answered defensibly, "well, that's what we did with Sirius." Harry said angrily, "you probably were forcing him- he hated this stupid house and being stuck in it!"

Hermione finally cleared her throat loudly and said, "Stop squabbling already. Harry, just take us through." She stood up and attempted, in vain, to smooth back down her hair.

"Fine," he said. The tapestry was still rolled up and silent. Harry stuck his wand in his back pocket, and, feeling slightly silly, offered his hands to Ron and Hermione. They each took one, and they walked through the tapestry once more. Once through, remembering Moody's advice, he checked to make sure his behind was still there. It was. Wands high, they wandered through the dark corridor.

"Let's walk the whole length of it, shall we?" he suggested. "Sounds good, mate," Ron answered, and Hermione nodded in agreement. They counted the number of doors: four on each side.

"Either of you remember which room was Regulus'?" Harry asked. "I don't know if Sirius ever said," Hermione answered. "He mostly showed us this hall one day when we were bored. I know his room, before he moved out, was up here someplace, though."

Harry nodded in understanding. "Okay, let's just do them one-by-one. They were standing at the far end of the corridor. He selected a door and opened it. "Urgh," he coughed. "This one has as much dust as my parents' house." "They probably all do," Hermione said knowledgeably. She performed her dust-removing spell. "Thanks," they said in unison. Harry held up his wand.

"Well, this certainly isn't our room," Ron said. "Check out that sink, though!" They were in a bathroom. The walls were blood red and the taps were shaped like snakes. "Reminds me a bit of the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said.

The room opposite proved to be a similarly decorated bathroom.

"This one is a girl's room" Hermione said, opening a closet in the third room. It had what appeared to be guest pajamas and robes. Harry said bitterly, "Maybe this is where dear cousin Bellatrix stayed."

One by one they opened the remaining five rooms. None appeared to be very occupied except for the two closest to the tapestry.

"Oh, this may have been Sirius's," Ron said. "look, all of the remaining clothes are still kid-sized. And this is definitely an old Gryffindor robe." He picked it up and looked at it curiously.

"Then that means the last room must have been Regulus'." Harry concluded. "Let's go." He opened the door to Regulus' room. Under all of the dust, it was still full of clutter, suggesting someone had indeed occupied it for many years.

"So," Hermione said, taking charge, "Let's look for anything that might give us a clue to the horcruxes- old journals, pictures, anything. Your dad said he destroyed the locket- maybe the remains are here."

See if we can figure out who that woman was, too." Ron added. Hermione gave him an appreciative glance. Ron smiled. Harry turned, embarrassed to catch them in an intimate gesture.

They looked around, and each took a corner. While Hermione was checking under the bed, she stood up suddenly. "HARRY!" She whispered in an urgent voice. The barrier I set on the front door- it is broken! Snape is back!


	8. Chapter 8: An Unusual Game of Quidditch

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Harry Potter :(  
**  
A/N: ** I really hope you like this chapter. I think it is my favorite one I've written so far…  
**  
jinxedpotterfan1:** Sorry about the last one being a cliffhanger..if you think that is bad, I'm heading to Antarctica soon, so who knows when I'll be able to update…expect at least three chapters between now and December, but I honestly don't know if I can do any more.  
**Mudbloodpotter05:** I love your questions! Yes to both your questions, and much sooner than Christmas…those are chapters 9 and 10  
**Delaine: **Give it a few chapters and you'll see a bit more about what Snape wants, although this one has a clue toward the end 

**Chapter 8**: **An Unusual Game of Quidditch**

They all stood up abruptly. Ron dropped a box of old toys and it fell to the floor with a thud. Harry banged his head on the dresser drawer. They both faced Hermione, mouths wide.

"Snape?" Harry asked, anger in his voice. Hermione nodded. "I'm sure of it. I put a spell on the door that triggers when he enters." Ron offered a low growl and held his wand ready. Ron called Snape some things that made Hermione blush. Harry nodded in agreement at Ron's comments, and pulled his wand out as well. Harry added, "Let's go see what he wants." His stomach was flipping, but in excitement, as it would before a quidditch match. A duel with Snape? He was ready and eager for it. Harry turned toward the door, Ron close behind.

"Wait!" Hermione said urgently. "He can't get up here, remember?" They were still standing in Regulus' doorway, which was, of course, blocked by any non-members of the Black family. Ron and Harry nodded, unsure of where she was leading the conversation.

"So," she said, impatiently, "let's not rush into this! We need to make a plan this time."

"A plan?" Ron said faintly? "A plan? Let's just get the murdering—" "Fine," Harry injected quickly, to stop a fight from ensuing, although he added just as impatiently, "But let's be sure to get him this time."

Harry continued, "We'll head down there, and I'll appear first. I'll engage him in a duel, and you two sneak up from the other direction. Attack." He quickly added, "But I want to be the one to finish him off." He couldn't hide the longing in his voice to destroy the man who had killed Dumbledore.

Hermione looked at him closely. "Are you going to use the Avada Kedavra on him?" She asked this as casually as she would ask him if he had finished his homework. Ron, interested in the question, also stared at him attentively.

Harry glared at her. "How could I not? I need to. I HAVE to! He took away everything from me!" Hermione looked at him closely. "You said once to Sirius and Lupin that you didn't reckon your father would want them to become killers just because of Wormtail….Do you think they'd want you to become a murderer in revenge?" She stared at him, not backing down. He glared at her. She added softly, "You already are burdened with Voldemort…why burden yourself more?" Harry's resolve loosened slightly.

"I…I…," Harry stumbled with his words. His brain was screaming, "of course you must kill him!" But…could he kill in front of his best friends? Kill in the same situation he had stopped Lupin and Sirius, two full-grown wizards, from killing in? But Snape- Snape had killed Dumbledore. "SNAPE KILLED DUMBLEDORE," Harry suddenly screamed. "HE told Voldemort about the prophecy, and my parents DIED!" "He bellowed, "Of course I can kill him!" Hermione and Ron's expressions were curiously blank.

Harry stared at them both, quite literally shaking in anger. Then, unexpectedly, a calm settled in. In the rush of a battle, really, he thought to himself, it was just like a quidditch match. He was a seeker- seeking Snape's death. Snape's spells were just dangerous bludgers he had to avoid. Hermione had never understood quidditch, anyway.

His anger channeled into battle, he let out a deep breath and rushed toward the door, anger directed toward Snape. The tapestry was down. He screamed, "Toujours pur" and raced through it.

Startled by his sudden exit, Ron yelled, "Come back, Mate!" But Harry had already rushed through the door and out the tapestry.

As he ran down the stairs, Harry realized his cloak was in the drawing room. He cursed silently. Hadn't Dumbledore told him to keep it on his self at all times? At least this time he was facing Snape with his wand.

He thundered down the stairs, knowing Snape would hear him, and not caring. Snape was just a bludger, after all. Slow moving, easy to dodge, he convinced himself. As he reached the landing, he nearly fell he was running so fast. Taking a deep breath, he slid through a few rooms to the kitchen. Once again, Snape was there waiting.

This time, Harry was ready. "_Expelliarmus_" he bellowed as he spotted Snape. Snape had been ready, too. Their spells shot off each other and broke a dish that had been lying in the sink. Neither took a breath. "_Petrificus Totalus_" Snape screamed as Harry ducked and shouted back the conjunctivitis curse at Snape. They both missed, but Snape was faster on the rebound, "_silencio_".

Harry opened his mouth uselessly, but instantly, just like on the quidditch pitch, adjusted. Snape laughed his cold, high laugh. "Well, Potter, I guess we shall see how well you learned your nonverbal spells?" Harry shook it off. Nothing more than a bullying Slytherin, just like on the pitch. They exchanged spells non -stop for several minutes.

Snape was slowly gaining on Harry, who had been backed into the hallway. Harry didn't notice, and continued throwing spells, ever searching-searching for the spell to defeat him.

Harry screamed silently, "_sectumsempra_" and a splattering of blood fell across the wall as Snape's cheek was cut open. Enraged that his own spell was used against him, Snape sneered back, "Can't think up your own spells, Potter?" as he issued "_sectumsempra_" back at Harry.

Harry blocked it, "_protego_!" He was wearing out. For all of his quidditch skills and DA training, he wasn't used to dueling. But Snape was still going strong. He seemed to relish every moment of the duel.

"Haven't done it yet, Potter?" Snape asked Harry as he removed the silencing spell. Harry panted. "Done what?" He hit his second wind, as though he had finally spotted the snitch. " _Tarantallegra_" Harry taunted back.

Snape swished his wand lazily to block the spell. "Avada Kedavra, Potter," he spit out. "I killed your mudblood hero- and you can't use it against me? How do you plan to use it against the Dark Lord?"

Harry looked at Snape in surprise. He recovered instantly with the bat-bogy hex. "Why do you care?" he asked Snape, keeping the conversation to a minimum.

Snape looked at him, cold and calculating. "I could explain myself to a four year more easily than to you, Potter." He paused, and caught Harry with the disarming spell. Harry slammed against the portrait of Mrs. Black, who instantly began to scream at Harry and cheer on Snape.

As Harry fell to the floor, he muttered, "_accio_ wand" and was up without missing a beat. He turned and faced Snape, and all of the rage he had built up over the past ten minutes exploded with a massive, "AVADA KEDAVRA". He had caught the snitch, match over. Gryffindor wins.

Snape gasped and slumped to the ground, unmoving.

Harry dropped his wand in shock.

Mrs. Black fell silent.

Harry stared, frozen. His heart was beating so rapidly he thought he it would explode. His mind began to race. I killed him, he thought. He laughed out loud. "I killed him!" For the first time since learning of the prophecy, his heart lightened. For the first time, he believed he could kill Voldemort.

His heart stopped and began skipping beats. For that one glorious moment, Harry had been proud of himself. But an instant later, Harry was disgusted with himself. "I'm no better than Snape," he whispered. His mind swirled to Malfoy. Even Draco couldn't kill a person, but he, Harry, had. "What have I done?" Harry whispered to himself. He felt tears roll down his face, and he slumped to the ground next to Snape's body. He would never be a child again.

Shortly later, Mrs. Black's noisy screams and tears joined his own. But Harry never noticed them.

00000000000000000000

Harry was unsure how long he stayed in the hallway next to Snape's body. But as time passes, tears dry, and Harry found himself looking at Snape. "Professor Snape," Harry whispered softly. He was full of mixed emotions. He carefully turned Snape over onto his back. His body was still slightly warm.

With the warmth gave Harry hope. He put his hand on Snape's chest. Harry's heart skipped a beat. Was his mind deceiving him? He thought he felt a faint beat of the heart. Frantic now, Harry felt for a heartbeat on his neck. Faint. Very faint. Harry looked about wildly.

Whatever he had felt about Snape previously had been erased by the wild hope that Harry could save his life. Not be a murderer. Save Harry himself by saving Snape's life.

Harry knew no healing magic. He ripped open Snape's cloak, pushed back his head, and gave him CPR the way he'd seen on the muggle telly. Harry knew without a doubt, no moment of his life would be as fearful as this moment. Uncertainty swirled around him. In the back of his mind, he could hear Mrs. Black bellowing at him, calling foul names. But Harry ignored her.

Harry pounded on Snape's chest, breathed air in his lungs. Pound chest, breathe air. Chest, air. CHEST! AIR! Harry's brain screamed. Harry was exhausted, but never thought about quitting. And then, as Harry's mouth left Snape's he heard it- a gasp, followed by a cough. Renewed with hope, Harry continued unrelenting. Finally, exhausted, he dropped against the wall and watched Snape breathing- very shallowly, but breathing, none the less.

Harry wiped the sweat off his brow. I'm not a monster after all, he thought with relief. He picked up his wand and summoned a glass. He filled it with water from his wand. He waited. Slowly, Snape opened an eye and looked at him. Relief rushed over Harry, giving him goosebumps.

"Maybe you're ready to face him after all, Potter," Snape voiced softly before closing his eyes to rest. Harry looked at him. Pride once again filled his chest. He was ready. He could perform the curse. Maybe not to the death, not yet. But well enough for now.

He left the glass of water for when Snape awoke, slowly stood and walked up the stairs to retrieve his friends.

00000000000

As Harry walked up the stairs, thinking he'd ask Hermione about healing spells, he realized the full extent of what he'd done to them. He'd left them. Left them when they were a team. Left them behind the tapestry. Behind the tapestry only a member of the Black family could walk through. They were trapped. If Harry had died- they may have been trapped forever. Sweat suddenly poured down Harry's face. They are going to kill me for this, he thought. What the hell had I been thinking?

What must they be thinking? How much time had passed? At least an hour. They must be completely panicked by now.

00000000000

The tapestry had lowered once again. He could hear the screams of the tortured muggles as he approached it. He could hear- Hermione?

"Harry?" he hear her, voice full of concern. "Is..is that you?"

"Yeah, Toujours pur," he said, and the tapestry rolled up and he walked through.

"OH, HARRY!" Hermione screamed, jumping and throwing her arms around her neck, tears streaming down her face. Harry's shirt, the parts not soaked with sweat, were promptly drenched in her tears. "I'm so glad you are alive! I thought you were dead! It's been so long!" she continued to cry.

Harry nearly laughed, he was so relieved and surprised Hermione wasn't yelling at him for leaving them behind. He muttered, "I'm sorry, I got carried away. I forgot you—" But Hermione interrupted him, "Let's forget about it and just get Ron out of here."

Harry looked surprised. "Ron? What happened?" Hermione just said, "Well, let's just say he tried a little too hard to join you in battle, but the tapestry wouldn't budge." She paused. "So what _did_ happen, Harry?" She eyed him curiously. Harry sighed. He really didn't want to relieve all of the emotions he'd go through in the past hour.

Finally, he said simply, "Snape is in the hallway... asleep, I think. We should keep him here until someone from the Order can take him in." Hermione nodded. "Let's get Ron to his bedroom and then floo the Weasley's. Molly can put Ron back together, and Arthur can take care of Snape."

Ron, who was laying on the floor, passed out and looking as though he'd simultaneously put every digit on his body in an electrical outlet, was easily magicked onto a floating stretcher by Hermione. Harry offered her one hand, and gripped a floating shoulder of Ron's. They walked through the tapestry.

00000000000

Minutes later, they had settled Ron on his bed and walked to the first floor. Harry could still hear Mrs. Black. He hadn't shut her curtains yet. He sighed, and walked to the hallway to shut them and move Snape.

Mrs. Black cackled as he approached. "You're too late, filth and mudblood," she laughed. Harry looked down. Snape was gone.


	9. Chapter 9: Visit to Hogwarts

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything associated with HP

**A/N:** Hi Everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in ages, but I am still in Antarctica, and the internet is super-slow. So I hope you all like this one. Thanks for all of the reviews :)

**SilentWolf:** I totally appreciate your comments. I'm amazed that I never noticed the fact that they don't refer to a spell ever by the incantation. (May be dorky of me, but I'm excited for when I re-read them to notice). Also, I am trying to be cannon, so I like these things being pointed out. I guess, perhaps, I should have used the cruciatus instead of the killing curse, but your comment made me think a lot actually. Any spell they use seems to have "degrees". For example, Tonks, who is highly trained, still can't do much of a simple cleaning spell. Or when they say "up" with the broomsticks. So although you are definitely right about Moody's comments, it does make me wonder if perhaps there are "degrees" to every spell, including the killing curse, even if it isn't explicitly mentioned.

**MudbloodPotter5: **Now, again, I can't answer those questions! Although, to admit the truth, I still honestly can't decide (in real, JKR life) whether I think Snape is good or not. She just did too darn good of a job messing with our heads straight from book 1.

**Chapter 9: Visit to Hogwarts **

Harry had been a mess after nearly killing Snape. He still couldn't decide if he was happy he lived, or disgusted with himself for being too softhearted. Regardless of his emotional confusion, it was nothing compared to the confusion they faced over Snape's last words he whispered to Harry, "Maybe you're ready to face him after all, Potter."

It wasn't so much the words, but how he said them. Snape had been barely breathing at the time. The son of the man he'd hated so much had just performed the unforgivable killing curse, intending to kill him. And yet Snape spoke with conviction. His voice had been soft, and slightly hoarse, but almost…well, if Harry didn't know any better, he would have said that Snape had spoken it with pride. But Harry did know better, and decided he must have been mistaken. But his mind still whispered to him, "Dumbledore said to trust him".

He had, of course, told the story to Hermione and Ron. They, as always, were great listeners, gasping in all the right places, and Ron even applauded when Harry first caught Snape with a spell. But when he reached the point in the story where he performed the killing curse, he halted.

He clearly remembered his argument with Hermione up in Regulus' room. He wasn't sure if he was proud that he had performed it, even under pressure, or ashamed. Sensing his indecision, he looked his friends in the face. They both stared at him, eyes full of empathy. Ron chucked at his bewildered face and just said, "Come on then, out with it, mate. We'll forgive you!"

And so, Harry continued with the entire story, without looking at them in their faces. When he finished, he took a deep breath, and looked into their eyes. Hermione's were clearly shining with pride for him. And Ron? Well, he just scratched his ear and asked, "What is this crazy muggle CPR where you have to kiss Snape?" A huge grin broke over Harry's face. One look at Hermione and they were both laughing. The weight was lifted off of Harry's shoulders.

Although confiding in them lessened Harry's burden, it did not solve the riddle of Snape's confusing speech. Ron swore Snape must have confounded him, but Hermione didn't say anything, and had just looked thoughtful when pressed for her opinion, "maybe there is more going on than what we know."

Regardless, they decided they would not be mentioning Snape's "visit" to Number 12, Grimmauld Place until after the meeting with McGonagall, which would be held in less than a week. If they were lucky, they hoped they could talk with Dumbledore's portrait, and he could give them a clue to Snape's behavior. Well, okay, Harry admitted, it was Hermione's idea to talk to Dumbledore about Snape; Harry and Ron thought Dumbledore had obviously been mistaken on Snape's behavior. But as they had nothing better to go on, Harry was settling for a discussion with Dumbledore, regardless of the fact that he now had a slight doubt in his heart about Dumbledore's beliefs regarding Severus Snape.

0000000000

Much to Ron's horror, much of the next week was spent in the library. "But we figured out who R.A.B. is!" he complained, to which Hermione answered, "yeah, and we need to know more about him! And figure out who the woman in the picture is." Harry personally was sick of the library, but agreed with Hermione. And so, the week slowly slipped by.

In desperation one day, Harry finally asked, "Hermione- don't they have yearbooks or something at Hogwarts?" She shook her head sadly. "Nothing of the sort that I know of." Ron suggested, "How about a list of Hogwarts students?" Hermione perked up a bit, "Good idea, Ron! Maybe when we meet Professor McGonagall she'll have old lists in her office." She paused. "I _wonder_ what she wants to talk to us about?"

The day before they were set to meet Professor- well, Headmistress McGonagall for the mysterious meeting she had called, there was another Order meeting. As she walked through the door, she gave them a look that quite clearly said not to discuss their scheduled meeting at Hogwarts.

As the Order met in the kitchen, the trio met in the drawing room, and discussed the photograph of Regulus Black and the unknown woman. Harry was seriously considering showing it to Lupin, at least. Lupin had known Regulus at Hogwarts; perhaps he'd know who the woman was as well. But Harry felt as though it would be dishonoring Dumbledore's word. Finally, he decided to take a chance. He wouldn't tell him anything _about_ the picture- just claim to have found it in the house.

The Order had decided to stay for dinner, and so Harry took a seat next to Lupin. He muttered, "Can I have a word with you after dinner?" Lupin looked him in the eyes curiously, but simply said "yes." Harry's eagerness for the conversation seemed to make dinner stretch on forever. Even Tonks' story about her catastrophic trip to the wedding-robe makers, in which she single-handedly managed to tear three gowns, didn't make time flow any faster, although it certainly seemed to work for Ron, who, by the end of the story, was curled up on the floor howling with laughter.

After dinner, members of the Order slowly trickled out the door. Eventually, it was just Lupin and Tonks left. When Tonks finally got up to visit the toilets, Harry pulled out the picture. He tried to remain calm, but still could detect a hint of urgency in his voice when he asked Lupin, "Do you know who this is?" Lupin looked at the photo carefully. "Well, this is Sirius's brother-" Harry interrupted, "No, the woman." Lupin looked at him more curiously. "Where did you get his picture?" Harry said hastily, "Oh, just found it around." Lupin looked suspicious, but finally said, "No, I don't know who this is. Perhaps she was a classmate of Regulus'." Harry looked at him closely. He seemed to be telling the truth. Harry thanked him, and put the picture away as casually as he could. "So," he said to fill the awkward pause, "set the date yet?"

00000000000000000000000

The next day they apparated to Hogsmeade. They were a bit nervous, seeing as it was the farthest any of them had apparated before. But all of their body parts made it safely to the end of the road near the small cave that Sirius had stayed at years ago.

They had run into a tiny problem- no longer did they all fit under the invisibility cloak. Finally, it was decided that Harry and Hermione would first proceed to Honeydukes, and get Harry through the trap door. Hermione would go back out and retrieve Ron from outside of the cave. It took some time, but Hogsmeade wasn't too busy, so the plan worked. An hour later, they were standing outside the hump-backed witch and checking the Marauder's Map (of which, thanks to their excursion to Godric's Hollow, they had multiple copies of). They carefully checked their path to the Head Office. "No one in the way," Harry whispered, "mischief managed."

Ron rolled his eyes and asked, "Who would be here during the summer?" Harry paused. "Just what do the instructors do during their summer breaks?" he wondered aloud. Hermione looked thoughtful, and Ron snorted at the expression and cracked, "She's probably trying to think through all the pages of Hogwarts, A History." Hermione huffed and replied, "Probably taking a well-deserved break from _you_ two." "More like Malfoy," Ron retorted.

They walked the rest of the trip to the office in silence, and stood outside the gargoyle. "Er…do either of you know what the password is?" But just then, McGonagall stepped out from around the corner. "Glad to see you arrived in a discrete manner," she said. "Acid Pops" she muttered. "You haven't changed the password yet?" Harry asked in surprise. McGonagall rolled her eyes. "Dumbledore's portrait refused to tell me how to change it until you arrived." But Harry could see a small smile flash across her face, as only Dumbledore could make her do. "I reminded, him, of course, that it was his duty as a former headmaster to assist the current headmistress in all ways, but…" she sighed deeply at this point, "he seemed to think it would be of great help for me to spend a few weeks frustrated with him. I assure you, he seemed quite amused."" Her lips were thin, but there was a small sparkle in her eyes.

"Well, Potter," McGonagall said, "Get up there. I'll be waiting outside, with Granger and Weasley."

Harry nodded and headed up to the office. He opened the door, and faced the portrait. Dumbledore was in there, slowly unwrapping a sherbet lemon and eyeing him over his half-moon glasses. He popped the candy into his mouth. "Well, glad to see you arrived finally." He chucked. "I knew Minerva would see things my way eventually." Harry grinned in spite of himself. It was just like the real Dumbledore. Almost.

"Harry, Dumbledore started, "thank you for sacrificing your childhood to serve a batty old man, well, picture, like me. I know you'd rather be off studying, --" Harry gave a snide cough at this- "or chasing love," Dumbledore continued, smiling slyly, "but I appreciate what you are doing. I just wanted you to know that."

Harry looked at him curiously. Surely there was more than that that Dumbledore wanted to say?

Dumbledore was looking at him just as curiously. Well, as curiously as a portrait can look, Harry thought. "I'm glad to see you are still capable of love, Harry. I know I have told you many times, but I'd like to say it again. Your _love_ is what will save everyone." Harry resisted an urge to roll his eyes. Yes, he can love. Big whoop. Love was doing nothing but hurting him at the moment.

He was about to say just that, when Dumbledore, spotting trouble, said, "I also wanted to give you something, in case, as an old man, I overlooked anything- please, take the pensieve."

"Are you sure, sir?" Harry asked. "Most certainly. Well, that will be all. I'm off to a lovely party with the Fat Lady and Violet," Dumbledore said jauntily.

"That's all?" Harry asked, incredulous, and feeling anger rising. "Don't you want to discuss…oh, I don't know…SNAPE!" Dumbledore continued with his curious look. Harry was suddenly panting in silent rage. Dumbledore continued to stare, taking the time to eat another sherbet lemon. Finally, he spoke.

"Harry," he said, the tone in his voice more serious than he'd ever heard it, "you gave me your word once that you would do everything I asked you to do. I asked you to trust _Professor_ Snape. Nothing has changed."

"HE ATTACKED ME! He showed up at Grimmauld Place yesterday and attacked us! HE KILLED YOU! HE TRIED TO HELP DRACO KILL YOU!" Harry screamed, in rage. "ARE YOU A FOOL?" He stopped for a breath, and then continued, "I tried to KILL HIM---" Dumbledore interrupted at this point, "You performed the killing curse?" He looked mildly surprised. "What happened?" His expression remained calm. Harry had seen Dumbledore more worked up over the flavor of a Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean that he was now.

Harry was filled with anger. "Where are your emotions?" he screamed. "You don't even care-Why don't you trust me to know the truth about Snape?" He paused, took a breath, and screamed, "I nearly KILLED him! Are you happy? I thought I was doing you a favor!" Harry was relentless and throwing words out without even knowing exactly what he was speaking about or whether or not he even meant it. And he knew it. And didn't care.

Dumbledore calmly set his bag of candy down and interrupted him, "Harry!" he said, voice loud. "I cannot impress upon you how important it is to trust and believe in my word for everything! Please, do not stop believing in me, or," he added softly, "love. Without that, all will be lost. This is the most serious matter of all. If you do not trust me, all will be lost."

"What, is that some kind of a prophesy?" Harry screamed sarcastically.

Dumbledore peered at him again. "Perhaps you remember our discussion on prophesy-" his voice finally rose in excitement and agitation, as it had last year, "Voldemort MADE you the threat you are by acting on a prophecy. Use your strengths you gained and take it as you please, just don't stop using your greatest strength!"

Rage was still building in Harry. He knocked over the desk. "Mr. Potter," Dumbledore admonished, "Those are no longer my items. Please do not destroy them without the current Headmistress's permission." Harry muttered, not meaning it at all, "Sorry, sir."

"I'm sorry I have not given you the conversation you have wanted," Dumbledore said, truly looking sorry. "But I hope you consider it. Everyone is looking to you. Please, take your pensieve; think about what I've said, about trust, and most of all, love. Love may be the same as forgiveness, you know. Certainly I have forgiven Severus for killing me. Certainly, you should be in his debt- for he saved you in your first year. Have you forgotten that? If I have heart enough to forgive him, you should have it in your heart to do the same-, as your father was able to do. Come back to see me at anytime." And with that, he jumped to the next photo and was soon gone.

Nigellus looked at him, and made a snide remark that Harry ignored. Slowly, Harry turned around and walked down the stairs. "Done, Potter?" McGonagall asked briskly. "Well, then, how about some biscuits?" Harry looked at her in disbelief, but silently followed her back up the stairs. He quickly exchanged looks with Ron and Hermione that clearly said he would tell them about his conversation with Dumbledore later, not in McGonagall's presence.

She stopped short when she found her desk tipped over, and peered curiously at Harry over her square spectacles. Harry refused to look her in the eyes, so McGonagall simply sighed, waved her wand to set the desk upright, and reluctantly seated herself behind it- they could tell she still preferred the idea of Dumbledore being there. "Well, I've heard from Molly that you three are no longer attending Hogwarts," she said with her lips thin. "Although, naturally, I do not approve, I also know you have made a decision you are sticking with. Might I suggest tutoring?"

"Professor, I really appreciate that. But, we don't have time. I'm sorry." McGonagall's lips stretched even thinner. She looked at Hermione closely. Hermione looked her straight in the eyes and nodded affirmatively.

McGonagall sighed. "I know you three refuse to discuss your mission that Dumbledore set you on- but you are barely legal!" Her voice began to tremble, "If something happens-".

Harry interrupted, "Professor McGonagall, I've got that taken care of." He reached into his pocket and handed her a blank sheet of parchment. "What's this?" she asked suspiciously. Ron and Hermione looked at him suspiciously as well. "If something- well, happens, it will reveal our mission to you."

"Oh," Hermione said, with a look of recognition, realizing Harry had employed the same charm as his father. McGonagall registered the interaction between Hermione and Harry, but ignored it. "Thank you, Potter," she said simply. "Have another biscuit."

"Now, there is one other reason I invited you here," she said, as they finished up their snacking. "Although you are not members of the Order of the Phoenix" Ron and Harry gave her angry glares which she ignored, and continued smoothly, "I would like you to be able to communicate with us in times of trouble. I therefore will be teaching you how to send messages via your patronus charm."

"Really?" Harry asked, excited. He had seen Tonks do that on the first day of Hogwarts last year.

"Yes, really, Potter," McGonagall said, giving him another rare smile. They walked to an empty classroom, and she proceeded to teach them. Although they had all previously perfected the charm in the DA course two years before and Harry back in his third year, it was still difficult to learn to attach the message. Hours later, they had finally perfected it.

McGonagall had arranged with the kitchens to have food sent up to the classroom. Harry nearly fell off of his chair when he heard, "Harry Potter, Sir! How wonderful it is to see you again!" Dobby hastily set a plate of food on a nearby desk and ran to hug Harry's leg.

A second house elf carry pumpkin juice appeared embarrassed. "Please forgive Dobby, sir!" he squeaked. But they simply smiled. "Dobby, how have you been?" Ron asked eagerly, as he noticed Dobby was wearing his Weasley sweater, regardless of the heat of summer. "Oh, very well, Wheezy, Sir." Dobby beamed.

"And how is Winky?" Hermione asked softly. "Oh, well, please do not speak to me about poor Winky," Dobby said, shaking his head sadly. "She still pines for her former master and is up to 12 bottles of butterbeer a day." He looked up at them, silently pleading them to change the subject.

"Er…How about Kreacher? Is he causing you any trouble?" Harry asked, grinning a bit. Dobby shook his head. "No, no trouble, Harry Potter, sir. But…" he paused here dramatically, looking around at McGonagall before lowering his voice to a whisper, "he has stopped doing your task you is giving us!" His eyes were wide-open in disbelief that Kreacher would dare stop obeying someone as great at Harry Potter.

Harry said, without thinking, "What, follow Malfoy? I mean, there isn't much he could do now, is there? He's been missing since…" his voice trailed off, too angry with Dumbledore to mention him. But Dobby said, insistently, "I would never stop following him for you, Harry Potter, sir! It is a great honor to serve you in such a way!"

Harry mumbled his thanks to Dobby, who beamed, and rolled his eyes at Ron and Hermione. Hermione, he noticed, had once again pulled out those SPEW badges and had pinned one prominently to her chest.

Harry thought back to his first night at Number 12, Grimmauld Place. He'd been wishing for Dobby's company then, and now was the perfect chance to ask Dobby to join them. "Hey, Dobby?" Harry asked, "Would you like to come and join us at my home?" Dobby promptly fell over in excitement. Hermione shot him a dirty look, Ron a grin, and Dobby, once he had stood up, began crying noisily. He jumped up and wrapped his little arms around Harry's leg once again, crying, "Thank you, Harry Potter, Sir! It would be the greatest honor a house-elf like Dobby could ever imagine!"

"Er…you're welcome…" Harry muttered, trying to get Dobby off of his leg. "Why don't you pop up and ask Dumbledore's portrait the secret to get there…Do house elves need the secret?" Dobby finally let go of Harry's leg and peered up at him. "It is done, Sir!" Dobby paused, and looked bashful. "It is bad of Dobby to ask, but-" He picked up a plate and banged his head against it repeatedly until Harry ripped the plate out of Dobby's hands and asked "What?"

Dobby looked embarrassed. "Well, you see, Sir, I'm the only one who will care for Winky…" Hermione interjected this time, "Well, of course you can bring her along!" Harry and Ron shot her quick looks of disagreement, but she simply continued, "And we'll give you a pay raise!" Harry rolled his eyes at her, but simply said, "yeah." There was absolutely no reason to argue with Hermione when her face was set like that!

Dobby finally left (the other elf had left as soon as was politely possible) in search of Dumbledore's portrait, and the trio and McGonagall had a merry dinner. They spent the remainder of their visit discussing the new transfiguration and DADA teachers- McGonagall, as was usual, had yet to find a DADA teacher. She wasn't worry yet, although there were only three weeks before the term started.

Just before leaving, Hermione asked whether she had lists of the past students. She looked at them suspiciously, but answered yes. She promised to make copies and owl them later.

The only thing Harry regretted was his conversation with Dumbledore. But Dumbledore never reappeared for Harry to ask for an apology or explanation.

00000000000000000000000

Once they walked back Harry muttered, "I'll tell you about Dumbledore's conversation when we get back, kay?" He just couldn't think about so much at once.

As they reached the statue of the humped witch, Harry said wistfully, "I wish we could go visit Hagrid. I wonder when we'll see him again. He smiled, remembering how it was Hagrid who first introduced him to the wizarding world. Harry laughed. "Remember how he'd try so hard to keep Fluffy and the stone a secret?" Ron added, smiling, "Yeah, but a bit of mead- and he'd always end up telling us."

"Seems like ages ago, doesn't?" Hermione said. "Seems easy, compared to what we have to do now." Ron snorted. "I remember you turning into a cat to sneak up on Malfoy. You sure haven't done anything so drastic yet." He joked, "What makes you think this is harder now?"

Harry hadn't been paying attention, but the thought of the Chamber of Secrets made him eager to try out the pensieve. He reflected on the memories he'd seen in it. Snape and his father. A young Tom Riddle. Riddle applying for a job at Hogwarts. Suddenly, Hermione and Ron's conversation snapped him back to attention. "Do now…WHY didn't we think of that before?" Harry said excitedly, clutching his new pensieve in remembrance. "Think of _what_, exactly?" Ron asked.

Harry rushed, "Voldemort came back to Hogwarts- he was looking for a teaching job- but what if he was _also_ looking for a place to hid a horcrux? Hagrid said it is the safest place to keep something!"

Hermione looked doubtful. "But Harry, you-know-who- I mean, Voldemort was always _afraid_ of Dumbledore. It doesn't make sense to put it here, right under his nose."

But Ron had perked up. "Yes it does! This place is monstrously huge! Dumbledore would never find it! And it explains why he wanted to be here."

"Well, you might be right," Hermione admitted, "but this place _is_ huge. How are we to find it?"

Harry's heart sunk. He remembered when he had hidden the Half-Blood Prince's textbook in the Room of Requirements- there were literally thousands of items hidden in there. But Voldemort wouldn't leave it lying around, would he?

Suddenly, his heart jumped. "THE CHAMBER! Voldemort was the last living heir of Slytherin. No one, not even Dumbledore, could get in! It must be there!" Ron and Hermione jumped up in excitement. They all sped to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"Hi, Myrtle," Harry said in a rush. "How are ya doing?" She eyed him gloomily. "What are you doing here? It isn't the school year yet. You never visit me anymore, anyway." She added, "Only when you _need_ something."

"Yeah," Ron said, "and we need you to-" "RON!" Hermione hissed. "Oh, sorry, Myrtle," Ron said unconvincingly. Myrtle gave a huge sob and dove into theU-bend, splashing them.

"Right," Harry said. "Let's do this." He stared at the serpent carved into the broken tap, willing it to appear real. "Open up," Harry hissed. It obliged.

Hermione, who had been petrified when Ron and Harry had gone down the chamber the last time, gave a surprised squeak as the sink fell to the floor and opened up to a slimy long pipe.

A sense of trepidation settled in the hearts of Ron and Harry, whose last experiences in the Chamber had given them both less than optimistic ideas about the chamber. Fortunately, this time around, there was much less danger: the basilisk was gone, Ginny was at home in The Burrow (as safely as she could be, considering the family clock was always pointing to 'mortal peril'), and Lockhart was safely tucked away at St. Mungo's.

Hermione's eyes were wide open as she saw the passageway for the first time. She muttered "_lumos_" and peered down the pipe curiously. Ron and Harry looked at her anxiously, almost as if awaiting her approval of their adventure. She just grinned and asked, "How do we get back up?"

Myrtle, reappearing from the U-bend, said rather unhelpfully, "Last time a great bird brought you up. Last time you paid more attention to me! Last time was fun! I thought you were going to die and share my stall with me!"

Harry shuddered involuntarily and Ron waved his hand as if to dismiss Myrtle, which she took as a cue to dive head-first back into the toilet, crying, "I'll find a _friend_ to talk to. Someone who shares my pains!"

Ignoring her, Hermione cleverly transfigured toilet paper into a strong rope. She claimed it would be like a ski-tow rope. Harry gave her a look- he'd gone on a class trip skiing once, and had spent an awfully large amount of his time grasping the rope and sliding backwards on his behind. Ron simply looked confused, but neither felt like describing the finer points of skiing to him, as they had both attempted it before over Christmas Holidays.

They tied one end firmly around multiple sinks and another end around Harry, who volunteered to go first. He sincerely hoped the rope would be long enough. The tunnel seemed to last for miles last time. Taking a deep breath, Harry jumped down and slid into the slimy pipe. Once again, eventually it leveled out, and he landed in the large stone tunnel. Harry remembered the tunnel seemed much larger last time around. He had been though a growth-spurt. He turned to watch Ron and Hermione come whizzing down the pipe. All three of them were covered in slime and muck, but were grinning- if they were right, they were about to find a horcrux!

He took the transfigured toilet paper rope and untied it from his waist. He let it dangle at the end of the pipe.

They walked through the tunnel slowly. Hermione's eyes were scanning quickly, trying to absorb everything. Harry remembered vaguely, "Wasn't there a snake skin around here last time?"

Ron muttered, "It was over four years ago. I'm sure it has decomposed by now." Hermione gave Ron another dazzling smile for the answer. Harry just shook his head. He wasn't sure if he could get used to all these smiles. The fights seemed somehow much more normal.

Regardless, with Harry leading, they shortly came across the rock pile that had fallen when Lockhart had performed the memory charm that had backfired with Ron's faulty wand. The small hole Ron had sifted out for Harry and Ginny's return was still intact. They climbed through awkwardly; once again aware that they were much bigger than they had been as second years. The three continued walking. Presently, Hermione asked, "How do you know this is the correct passage?"

Harry looked at her, surprised. He remembered then that he spent a large portion of his time with his eyes closed or squinting last time, and she brought up a good point. However, he knew there were those doors up ahead, and so he said confidently, "You'll see."

Very shortly, they came up to the massive wall with emerald-eyed serpents gazing down at them. Ron and Hermione were both staring in awe. Harry simply walked forward and hissed, "Open up." The doors slowly slid apart.

The trio walked inside the chamber. Harry took much more in during his second visit to the chamber. The stone pillars were made of a dark stone, somehow absorbing the light from their wands. The serpents carved on the pillars glared, bright, bejeweled eyes flickering in the wandlight. Yet Harry was much more confident- the basilisk was dead. In fact, as his eyes adjusted to the dim light and he heard a crunch below his feet, he realized he was standing on what remained of the once formidable basilisk. Straight ahead was the monkey-faced stone statue of Salazar Slytherin where Ginny had once lain. He shook off thoughts of Ginny.

As much as he wanted to daydream about her, that would be reserved for later, laying in pain in his bed wishing she could be by his side. But now, now was about searching for a horcrux. Last time he was here he destroyed one. He hoped he'd be so lucky this time.

Harry wondered where Voldemort would have hidden the horcrux. Something Ravenclaw/Gryffindor or the Hufflepuff cup, he reminded himself. The three gazed around the spacious chamber in despair. All of a sudden, despite the growth spurt, it was much larger than Harry remembered it being.

Hermione magicked several large, blue fires. They made the jeweled-eyed serpents carved on the columns flicker most realistically, but certainly, the light aided them in their search.

They searched the stone pillars, the statue of Slytherin, everything…But no horcrux. Harry didn't want to admit defeat, and, raising his wand high, he shouted, "_accio_ school broom" and focused his mind on a broom. Shortly, they heard a whizzing sound and an old shooting star came to a rest in Harry's hand.

Ron whistled appreciatively, and even Hermione grinned, although she simply said, "I hope Professor McGonagall didn't see that." Ron just grinned and muttered, "Spoilsport…I wonder why she was here anyway. Doesn't _she_ go home for the holidays like the rest of 'em?" Hermione said sensibly, "Probably a lot of responsibility on her shoulders now, being the new headmistress and all…. and with extra responsibilities with the Order."

Harry, as they discussed McGonagall's life, took off on the broom to search the high ceilings of the chamber. Ron called out, "Who'd win in a quidditch match, Harry? You or Krum?" Hermione answered for him this time, "Harry would win, of course!" Harry grinned appreciatively. "Thanks, Hermione!" he called from 30 feet above their heads. But Ron's grin was even bigger.

Bored, an hour or so later, Ron shouted, "How's the weather up there?" Hermione groaned at the overused joke, but Harry answered back, "Foggy! This is about as easy as seeing through Trelawney's crystal balls!" Ron and Hermione gave amused laughs. "Any grims up there, Harry?" Ron called back. Harry didn't answer as he flew back down and landed next to the pair.

He wasn't quite ready to admit defeat, but there was absolutely no sign of a horcrux that he could see. Shrugging his shoulders and sighing, Harry said, "Guess I was wrong about a horcrux down here."

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look. "But it was a brilliant idea, Harry. No one but Voldemort could get down here! Not even Dumbledore could! Even if they forced themselves through the sinks, they still had to be Parselmouths to open the chamber walls!" Ron cut in, in excitement, "Or open a third door?"

Harry just stared at Ron in amazement. "Bloody Brilliant, Mate." Harry ran back up the statue of Salazar Slytherin and shouted impatiently, "open up!"

Nothing happened.

"Wrong language, mate," Ron offered helpfully.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Gee, thanks." Closing his eyes, he imagined a snake and tried again. "OPEN UP."

Nothing happened. Well, except for Ron swearing and Hermione admonishing him.

Harry wasn't giving up, and started shouting randomly in Parseltongue.

"Pure Blood!" nothing

"Horcrux!" nothing

"Salazar Slytherin, greatest founder of Hogwarts!" nothing

"Chamber of Secrets" nothing

"Lord Voldemort Rules!" nothing

"Immortality!" nothing…oh wait…

The base of the massive statue of Slytherin slowly opened. It revealed the largest drawer any of them had seen. And there, nestled inside of the drawer was…

"The Hufflepuff Cup!" Hermione screamed in excitement. She jumped up and did some sort of jig of excitement with Ron. "We found one!" Ron positively sang. Grinning, Harry jumped up and joined them in their impromptu song and dance.

As the excitement wore off and they calmed down, they gazed upon the cup. Was it safe to touch it? Harry remembered Dumbledore's withered hand only too well. Finally, he ripped off a section of his shirt, muttered, "_engorgio_" several times until the piece of shirt swelled to the size of a quilt and he folded it over. Gingerly, he picked up the cup with the shirt and wrapped it up. And then he saw what the cup was sitting on.

Piles of text and private notebooks. It looked like many years of work on Tom Riddle's part. Book after book on horcruxes. Hermione quickly dived her head into the drawer, pulling them out. Harry said slowly, "He opened the chamber in his fifth year. So, I wonder if he'd come back later to store all of these? Do you think he has any record of his other horcruxes?" Hermione dived back into the drawer with even more enthusiasm, if it were possible, although she shook her head doubtfully at the idea.

Now that they had found it, it seemed almost anticlimactic. Harry expressed these thoughts out loud. Hermione looked at him as if he were crazy. "Harry!" she exclaimed, "look at what you've done! Not even Dumbledore could have opened this drawer. Voldemort was the last living heir of Slytherin. He was the only person that should have been able to open this drawer! Just how many parselmouths do you think this school has had?"

Harry blushed. "Well, still, it didn't take any skill." "And a good thing, too," Ron added "if Dumbledore could barely take that last one, then you have some skill." Harry just continued to blush.

"Well," he said, "let's get all of these books and the horcrux out of here." Very carefully, they bewitched the books to be feather-light and wrapped them up in another engorged piece of Harry's shirt. With a jaunty step in their walk, they headed back to the pipe get out of the chamber. They'd tackle actually destroying the horcrux later, in the relative safety of Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

They squeezed through the fallen rocks and came to a stop at the base of the slimy pipe. Harry grinned and grabbed the transfigured toilet paper rope and started, rather awkwardly due to the cup in one hand, up the rope. Ron followed clutching the broomstick, and was closely followed behind by Hermione with the bag of books slung over her shoulder.

After climbing for twenty or so seconds, Harry felt the rope twitch and then snap suddenly. Harry tumbled backward, smacking into Ron, who promptly fell into Hermione. The trio tumbled back to the bottom of the pipe. Hermione landed on the ground first, with Harry and Ron piled on top, Ron smacking her on the head with the broom as they fell.

"Urgh," she groaned as she felt her forehead where a throbbing red lump had appeared. "Lucky these books were bewitched to be light!" But she looked worried. Ron gently touched her bump and declared that she would be all right, albeit the worried tone of his voice implied otherwise. But Hermione brushed his concerns aside and said impatiently, "not that! I put an unbreakable charm on the rope. Someone must have been up there!"

Harry looked at her in shock, but quickly recovered and pulled out his copy of the Marauder's Map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he said as quickly as possible. His eyes scanned the map, "Well, here's Myrtle…McGonagall is outside her office—" He blinked quickly, and then exclaimed, "Malfoy is right outside the door!"

Hermione looked shocked. "He's been hiding _here_ the whole time? I was sure Voldemort had him…"

He looked at them both, calculating. "Look, we don't have much time to catch him." He looked at the pipe and added, "I'll fly up with Hermione and then leave the broom for you Ron. You take it up on the second trip with the books and cup, okay? Just give us five minutes to get up the pipe." He'd have to fly slowly to make it up- it was narrow for flying on a broomstick at high speeds.

Harry realized Hermione and Ron probably would love a romantic ride on a broomstick- but he needed to be up there now, with backup. Understanding completely, Hermione had already jumped up on the broomstick and was waiting expectantly. She smiled and said, "Let's go." There was no sense of apprehension in her voice; very different from the last few times Harry had flown with her, which, admittedly, had been on the backs of some of Hagrid's more unusual creatures.

Harry flew up the pipe as fast as he dared, but, true to Fred and George's word back in his first year, the school brooms did indeed have a drag to the left. As they reached Myrtle's bathroom, Harry was reminded of his conversation last year with Myrtle, who had apparently befriended Malfoy. And Dobby had said he hadn't stopped following him! How could he have been so stupid?

As they jumped off the broom, Harry shouted in Myrtle's general direction, sounding remarkably like Ron, "Couldn't keep your fat mouth shut, huh?"

Myrtle flopped out of her stall as they consulted the Marauder's Map to Malfoy's location and said moodily, "At least _he_ talks to me like I'm a person!"

Harry was extremely doubtfully, but didn't have the time to dispute Myrtle's claims that Malfoy was decent. He and Hermione left the broom and Ron behind and raced after Draco.

They weren't sure where exactly he was heading, but as they ran past the Head Office they slowed to a stop. Headmistress McGonagall was lying on the floor unconscious.

Hermione's mouth opened in horror, and Harry just said grimly, "stay here, take care of her. I'll go after Malfoy."

Consulting the map again, Harry ran in Malfoy's direction, toward the great front doors. A minute later, he heard Ron calling, from the air. Pausing and panting, Harry jumped up on the broomstick behind Ron. They reached the front door just as Malfoy was- according to the map. But they saw him nowhere.

Ron pulled out his wand but couldn't find a target. Suddenly, they heard Malfoy bellow, "_Petrificus Totalus_" He hit Ron directly, causing the broom, and Ron, to crash to the floor. Malfoy must be wearing an invisibility cloak.

As Malfoy ran for another shot, to hit Harry, something loud fell with a clunk on the ground. It was long and wrapped in a cloak. Harry, catching the suddenly visible object, shouted, "_Stupefy_" but apparently missed, as Malfoy taunted, "You'll never catch me, Potter. I'm about to make the Dark Lord proud of me!" His voice held longing and desperation.

Harry shouted back, to keep Malfoy in the building, "Looks to me like you've been hiding from him! How come your mommy keeps putting ads out for your return?"

Malfoy just laughed and said, "I'm a little too busy for her now, Potter. I'm doing business the Dark Lord requested especially! And I'm doing it all by myself, without that interfering git." Harry was shocked. Since when did Malfoy call Snape a git? Harry was suddenly knocked to his feet with the jelly-legs jinx and the mysterious object was picked up by Malfoy, went invisible, and the front door opened and closed.

Harry wobbled over to Ron and muttered the counter-curse to unbind him. Ron smiled, said thanks, and did the same for Harry. They looked at each other, but Malfoy was already off of the map. Then, remembering the unconscious McGonagall, they ran back to the head office.


	10. Chapter 10: Leaps of Intuition

**Chapter 10**: Leaps of Intuition

**A/N: **Let's just say pensieve portion of this chapter has been milling around in my head since I read book 6……I'd love to hear if you agree/disagree with me….

000000000000000000000000000000000

Harry and Ron rushed back to Hermione, who was kneeling beside Professor McGonagall's limp body. Though her hands were shaking, Hermione said, with a clear voice, "I just sent Professor Lupin a message. I thought it would be best if the Order decided how to take her to the hospital."

"Then…" Harry started uncertainly, "She's going to be okay?" Hermione looked them both in the eyes and gave a short nod. "I think so. She's starting to come around now." They looked back down at McGonagall, who was breathing shallowly.

Ron went back to retrieve the horcrux and books they'd left in Myrtle's bathroom. When he returned, they placed them under the invisibility cloak such that when Lupin arrived, he would not see them.

Harry pulled out the Marauder's Map and waited for Lupin's arrival. Gazing over the map, Harry noticed that Malfoy had indeed left the grounds. Hagrid was not here. Nor was Filch. In fact, it appeared that, save Peeves, ghosts, and house-elves, the castle was empty. He looked up, "What happened to the increased security of the castle? I thought they had permanent aurors stationed here?"

Hermione also looked intrigued. "Perhaps they thought they were unneeded in the summer?" she suggested doubtfully. "But after," her voice stumbled slightly, "Dumbledore died, I'd assumed they would have increased security even more!"

Ron looked grim. "Either way, they'd sure better do so now."

Harry jumped up as 'Remus Lupin' appeared on the edge of the map. "I'll go let him in, shall I?" he muttered.

Harry's thoughts were flying a mile a minute. Malfoy. Malfoy was the first wizard of his age he'd ever met. Malfoy was the first wizard he'd ever truly hated. Malfoy, whom lately he had been feeling sorry for- not only had his own life been at stake if he failed the mission Voldemort had sent him, but his parents as well. Harry has honestly thought Malfoy was dead, regardless of his mother's daily prophet pleas. After all, it had been Snape that killed Dumbledore, not Malfoy. But now- was he still working for Voldemort? Why had he attacked McGonagall? But then, why hadn't he killed McGonagall? Why had he been hiding in the Castle? Perhaps he'd been hiding from Voldemort? Harry's head was bursting with thoughts, and was itching to use his new pensieve to sort them out.

Too quickly, Harry reached the front doors and greeted Lupin, whom he quietly escorted back to McGonagall.

Lupin did not ask Harry, Ron, and Hermione why they'd been at the Castle that day, for which they appreciated. He merely looked at McGonagall, said, "Let's get Minerva out of here," and headed toward the Headmistress's office. "We can make a portkey to an undisclosed location. It would not be wise to announce that more people have infiltrated Hogwarts."

Hermione jumped up and muttered, "Acid Pops" by the gargoyle. It did not slide open. "Hum, she must have already changed the password," she muttered to herself. She kneeled back down by McGonagall and asked kindly, "Professor, what is the new password to your office?" McGonagall blinked her eyes feebly and muttered, "biscuits".

Hermione jumped back up and called out "biscuits". The gargoyle still did not budge.

Lupin called out, "never mind, never mind now. We'll just side-apparate her out." He conjured a stretcher out of thin-air and they walked out. Harry quickly uncovered the horcrux, books and pensieve and shrank them, stuck them in a pocket. Except for the cup. He tried shrinking it twice, but the magic Voldemort must have spelled into was too strong. It gave a feeble flop, shot green sparks at him, and Harry hastily wrapped it back up and covered it up with the cloak.

He sped up a bit to become even with Lupin. "Professor, why aren't there any aurors stationed at Hogwarts today?"

Lupin eyed him warily. Harry could tell he was weighing how much he should tell the three about the security-runnings of Hogwarts. Finally, sighing slightly, he said, "Minerva was going to use today place her own spells and charms around Hogwarts. It is, er…inadvisable to be around when so much magic is being performed." He continued walking in silence.

Hermione now was walking even with Lupin. "But didn't Dumbledore already place security spells around Hogwarts?"

Lupin looked at her. "In times like these, you can never have too much protection."

Ron finally burst with the question they'd all been wondering, "Then how did Malfoy get in?"

Lupin looked at him. "Well, how did you get in?" Ron rolled his eyes. "The one-eyed witch, of course. As I'm sure you very well knew."

Lupin continued to stare into his eyes. "Yes, but perhaps Mr. Malfoy knew as well."

000000000000000000000000000000000

When the trio returned to headquarters, after much assurance that McGonagall would be fine and leaving St. Mungo's in a day or two, they turned their attention back to their find in the Chamber of Secrets.

The exhilaration of finding the horcrux quickly wore off as they stared wearily at the Hufflepuff cup. What did they do with it now?

"So, how did Dumbledore destroy the ring, Harry?" Ron asked. Harry stared at him, mouth agape. "I..I don't know." The diary was destroyed with the basilisk's fang. How _did_ Dumbledore destroy the ring? Harry finally muttered, "it was just gone one day. It had the crack in the stone." Pathetic answer, he thought.

Ron eyed the cup, which Hermione had placed on the table in a magical, clear box so that they were not tempted to touch it.

Hermione had quickly busied herself with the documents and journals they had found. Harry paused. Neither of them would notice if he slipped away. He carefully stood up, picked up the pensieve, and walked to his room.

000000000000000000000000000000000

Harry sat the pensieve on his side table, pulled his wand out of his back pocket, pointed it to the door and muttered, "_muffliato_". He realized this was his first time using the pensieve by himself. True, he'd fallen into, both accidentally and purposely, before; however, he'd never pulled himself out. Dumbledore (or Snape, he thought bitterly) had always pulled him out. Perhaps he shouldn't try this for the first time alone. What if he'd never found his way out?

I don't have to fall in to use it, he reminded himself. He stared at the rough stone basin. Very slowly, almost against his will, he brought his wand to his temple. Against his will, visions of Snape appeared.

Snape's limp body, against the floor, "_Maybe you are ready to face him after all, Potter_". _What_ did it mean? Why does Dumbledore still trust him? Harry cautiously pulled his wand from his temple. As he did, the silvery, liquid-air memory stretched from his head. Harry brought the wand to the pensieve. The memory swirled within. Harry watched it, once more, before bringing his wand back to his temple. He resolved to solve the mystery of Snape's loyalty now.

Much like during his occlumency lessons with Snape, memories rushed toward him. He focused, pulling the memories he wanted.

His anger with Hermione in the headquarters; was that only a week ago or two? The family portrait falling from the wall, the letter from his father appearing…

_Unfortunately, I am writing this to pass on information that will make your life more difficult. As you know, your mother and I are aware that Voldemort is after our family. We have Snape's word that he will do everything to protect us from his side._

Harry added the memory of the letter to the pensieve. He contemplated it. Even his father had been convinced Snape was good. Then…he searched his mind again…

Less than three months ago, standing in the hallway with Professor Trelawney.

_"I remember my first interview with Dumbledore. He was deeply impressed, of course, deeply impressed…I was staying at the Hog's Head, which I do not advise, incidentally – bed bugs, dear boy- but funds were low. Dumbledore did me the courtesy of calling upon me in my room at the inn. He questioned me….I must confess that, at first, I thought he seemed ill-disposed toward Divination…and I remember I was starting to feel a little odd, I had not eaten much that day… but then … but then we were rudely interrupted by Severus Snape!_"

Brushing aside the information on the bed bugs, Harry thought out loud, "Dumbledore had hired her then, correct?" She'd said at the inspection by Umbridge that she'd been teaching at Hogwarts for "_nearly sixteen years_". She had been completing her 16th year. Harry, he'd been born in July. She started teaching the same year he was born. She'd made her prediction before Harry was born.

This meant that last year was her 17th year teaching at Hogwarts. And what had Snape said during his inspection? Umbridge had asked, " _how long have you been teaching at Hogwarts_?" He'd answered, "_fourteen years_". Had that meant it was in fact, his fourteenth year? Or had he completed fourteen years, and that year had been the start of his 15th? Either way, Dumbledore had not given him the job that year he'd walked into the Hog's Head. When did Snape start? Was it after Harry's parents had been killed? No, Harry had been a year old when they died. Back during the memory, then, it has been fourteen years ago that they had been killed. Snape must have already been at Hogwarts- after all his parents died on Halloween- and school started in September. But why had Dumbledore waited a year to hire him? He only hired him after Snape "turned" to the Order's side.

Harry swirled the memories in the pensieve, looking for the first court trials he had ever watched, well over two years ago. He found it. Igor Karkaroff chained to the dreadful chair that Harry himself had sat in two years before. Mr. Crouch, telling Karkaroff that his names were not useful, they were sending him back to Azkaban…and then, Karkaroff shouted, "_Severus Snape_!".

Mr. Crouch, coldly, "_Severus Snape has been cleared by this council. He has been vouched for by Albus Dumbledore_." Karkaroff's shouting reply, "_No! I assure you! Severus Snape is a Death Eater!"_

Harry watched, still transfixed, as Dumbledore raised to his feet and stated, calmly, "I_ have given evidence already on this matter. Severus Snape was indeed a Death Eater. However, he rejoined our side before Lord Voldemort's downfall and turned spy for us, at great personal risk. He is now no more a Death Eater than I am_."

Harry removed his wand from the pensieve and thought. So, Snape most certainly had told the prophecy, he'd already know that. And, at the end of year five, Dumbledore had mentioned that the spy who'd heard it did not hear the whole thing. What had he said? Again, Harry's wand reached for his temple. "_My- our- one stroke of good fortune was that the eavesdropper was detected only a short way into the prophecy and thrown from the building_." Harry added that memory, frowning.

Trelawney had not remembered giving either prediction- but she remembered Snape? Obviously, Snape must have entered the room…or else Trelawney wouldn't have seen him. And she must have finished the prophecy. But then, wouldn't Snape have heard the whole thing? Harry didn't think Trelawney and Dumbledore's stories matched. Harry was willing to bet Snape had heard much more than he'd ever admitted to.

Harry groaned, his mind too full. Dumbledore, Voldemort, and Snape…. all masters of occlumency? Was Dumbledore a master of it? Had he wanted Snape to teach him because Snape was, in fact, better at it then Dumbledore? Could he have been lying the entire time? And then, perhaps Snape knew that Harry and Voldemort needed to face each other- he'd heard the entire pensieve. It mattered not that Snape had not attacked Harry in six years at Hogwarts.

"I need to be a bit more methodical about this," he muttered to himself. "Alright, year one." Harry pulled memories of cold eyes gazing at him with hate. But then, the memory of himself, clutching a broomstick, holding on for dear life. Snape muttering the counter-curse to Quirrell's spell. Then Snape, in the Staff Room, muttering to Filch about Fluffy. He pulled the memories from his temple. They were pulled along like taffy from his head to the pensieve, where he'd placed his wand. Harry swirled the liquid-air and watched his memories. It certainly looked as though Snape was on Dumbledore's side during their first year.

Swiftly, Harry's mind focus on year two. Snape's smirk at the chamber been opened. His look of surprise when Harry spoke Parseltongue.

Then, third year. This was when the memories got really complicated. Why had Snape been so concerned about Lupin teaching at Hogwarts? Was it really a childhood grudge? Did he really think Lupin was helping Sirius into the school? Suddenly, Harry became numb with cold as he remembered the conversation in the Shrieking Shack. Sirius, as though it was only yesterday, speaking with disdain in his voice to Pettigrew, "_I heard things in Azkaban, Peter…they all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them…I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information…" _And then, Sirius bellowing in anger, "_YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE JAMES AND LILY DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"_

Harry's heart skipped a beat. Then another. Cold dread filled his body. If all of the other Death Eaters had known Pettigrew was the spy- then so did Snape. Snape- Snape would have known Sirius was innocent. But Dumbledore- he said, "_I myself gave evidence to the Ministry that Sirius was the Potters' secret keeper." _ Harry felt faint. Dumbledore never knew. If Snape had indeed been on the Order's side, he would have told Dumbledore…or was that boyhood grudge really so strong that Snape had keep Sirius at Azkaban for so many years? Was there more to it than that? Perhaps it was more important to keep Snape's cover than save Sirius from prison?

And…and….if Snape had honestly been on the Order's side, and told Dumbledore that Voldemort was after the Potters…then why hadn't he told him that Pettigrew was the traitor BEFORE Pettigrew was made the secret-keeper?

Harry had had enough. He decided it was time to show the memories to Ron and Hermione.

000000000000000000000000000000000

Neither Ron nor Hermione had used the pensieve before, though of course they'd both heard Harry talk of it extensively. Harry carefully swirled them memories and told them his theory- without a doubt- Snape was Voldemort's. He'd never been on the Order's side. Once again, Dumbledore had been fooled.

Ron and Hermione nodded through all of Harry's reasoning. Finally, grimly, Ron asked the unanswered question, "How did Snape trick EVERYONE?" Which was quickly followed by Hermione's, "And why did he seem so proud of your dueling skills last week?"

Harry said, slowly, "I've been thinking about that, too. I wonder…remember how Malfoy and Snape had been talking? About the unbreakable vow? What if…I mean... what if Snape made one with my dad?" Hermione looked at him skeptically, and Harry rushed, "No, listen, it makes sense. Make a promise you can't break- maybe it was something like, "I will protect Harry or I will train him to fight, or something stupid." And so, of course, Snape _hasn't_ been attacking me (except to "train" me)- but, if he truly heard the entire prophecy, he knows it doesn't matter! Because it is Voldemort whose got to destroy me. Snape can just get himself knocked out or busy or something when the final battle comes- and do his "best" to protect me, but fail…he'd still live then, right?" Harry paused, out of breath, eyeing Ron and Hermione through the fringe that hung flat on his forehead. "Well?" he asked impatiently.

Hermione said, rather calmly, "It does all make sense, Harry. But, still, let's think about it a bit more."

Ron rolled his eyes, said, "It is a brilliant plan on his part. I think you've nailed it. That would explain why Snape has been showing up- he's got to keep whatever this promise is that he made."

Harry flopped back on the couch and sighed. "So what have you two been up to?"

Hermione gestured toward the stack of documents they had removed from the statue of Salazar Slytherin in the Chamber of Secrets the day before. "Any headway?" Harry asked.

Ron grunted, "nope" before asking, "do you think you can _read_ Parseltongue?"

Harry looked at him, "You're joking, right? I mean…it is a snake language- snakes don't exactly write." Ron just passed him a stack of papers. Harry's eyes grazed the strange language briefly before cracking up. "Ron, this isn't Parseltongue!" He passed the papers to Hermione.

She looked up at him, "Ron, don't they teach you anything in the wizarding world about different cultures?" Ron blushed to the tip of his ears before muttering, "obviously not. What is it then?"

Hermione looked at him. "They are in all sorts of languages- this is obviously Chinese…this one is Hindi, I think. Hum…Arabic?" She ruffled through more pages. "I bet I can find a spell to translate them." She continued, "Anyhow, the documents I was reading were in English. Mostly just gruesome details on horcruxes, how to make them, suggestions on how to hide them. But nothing on destroying them, except," she shuffled some papers before reciting,"The destruction of a Horcrux can only occur if the force that which destroys it is both the same and opposite to the force that made it". She groaned, frustrated.

Harry, however, brightened. "That makes perfect sense!" Ron looked at him, agog.

"I destroyed the diary," Harry shouted, jumping onto the couch. "I'm the same- I'm a Parseltongue!" He paused, thinking. "But, I'm the opposite- because I wanted to save the muggle-born- not destroy them!". He paced the floor, amazed at his brilliance. "And Dumbledore- with the ring- it was taken from his family- so Dumbledore could destroy it, because he is the opposite- not family. But…Dumbledore was the head of Hogwarts! The only place Voldemort ever thought of as home!"

Harry took a deep breath. "The force- it is the person who destroys it, not _how_ it is destroyed!"

Hermione was so amazed at Harry's leap of understanding she looked like she was going to faint. Ron jumped in, however, with, "And Regulus Black- he destroyed the Slytherin locket! He had been sorted into the Slytherin house- which turns out dark wizards- but he was good! He turned to the side to hunt dark wizards! Same and opposite again!" He paused. "And he was a dude. Lockets are rather girly- that's an opposite, too."

Harry grinned at Ron appreciatively, but Hermione spoke with apprehension in her voice, "So, we can't destroy the Hufflepuff Cup…because we aren't the same….we aren't Hufflepuffs. We're going to have to involve more people."


	11. Chapter 11: Attacks from Every Side

**A/N: Sorry this is so late! I'm not JKR, obviously.   
**

**Chapter 11:** **Attacks from Every Side **

Incredibly, inconceivably, Ron had a grin- (a rather stupid-looking grin, Harry thought to himself). What could he be grinning about? Hermione, in a rather snappier- than-usual voice, asked the question out loud.

Ron laughed. "We don't have to involve Hufflepuffs."

Harry wiped the grimace off of his face, "What?" he asked, hopeful he hadn't misheard.

Ron simply continued, smiling, " the same and opposite, right? So, in the case of the Slytherin locket- Regulus Black had been a Slytherin (the same) and he'd betrayed the Slytherins, and "turned" good (the opposite). So it could have been a bad Gryffindor who could have destroyed it, too."

"Oh, real helpful," Hermione snapped. "Let's just go see if Wormtail is free right now."

Harry rolled his eyes at Hermione. "You know, Ron," he said seriously, "you must be right." He felt a bit of the weight lift off of his shoulders.

Ron gave a sheepish shrug and continued, "And so there must be lots of combinations. It might even involve the mood that you-know-know..I mean…Voldemort…had been in at the time. But we can't just fall to pieces because we take it too literally."

Harry expected Hermione to jump up, hug and praise Ron (and probably break into tears) for this exciting realization. What he had not expected was for Hermione to flush angrily, clench her teeth and shout, "Oh, you think I'm falling to pieces, do you?"

Ron stared, mouth agape. "Er..I mean, NO, I just…"

Hermione rolled on. "This is …is Voldemort we are talking about! It isn't like he's going to make it easy to destroy him! Look what happened to Dumbledore." Tears threatened to pour out of her eyes.

Ron took a quick step back, "No, I mean…I just think it doesn't have strict "rules" to follow…I think…"

Hermione cut in, "All your thoughts end up wrong. He's not stupid, you know! Don't try to sugarcoat the situation. And I'm not stupid to be worried about it!"

Ron began to falter; clearly confused at Hermione's outburst.

Harry, though reluctant to enter into the spat, which he thought might have a bit more to do with Hermione and Ron's relationship than with the Horcruxes, said, very quietly, "I dunno if Voldemort exactly "planned" for any of them to be destroyed, Hermione. He probably has no say in how they are destroyed. We've just been lucky. "

Hermione simply glared at him.

Harry raised his eyebrows, muttered, "I'll go make us some dinner, shall I?" and left. He had not expected a fight to arise between them, and frankly, he couldn't see what the fight had been about. His worries about their relationship strengthened. What happens when they are supposed to be facing Death Eaters and they are too busy squabbling? Preoccupied, Harry looked up with a start when he entered the kitchen.

Several members of the Order rested at the table: Bill, Mr. Weasley and Tonks. Harry received a hearty handshake from Mr. Weasley, a jovial slap on the back from Bill and nothing from Tonks. Harry stared at her, confused. Her hair was again that lank, mousy brown color, and she looked as though she'd been crying. Harry's heart gave a shake. Was everything okay? He looked around the room, but everyone appeared calm. He found Mrs. Weasley standing by the stove.

Harry quickly muttered a, "sorry, forgot you were having a meeting today," before turning to leave the room. From the stove, Mrs. Weasley called him back, "Harry dear, we thought you might like some company tonight." Harry stared at her. Perfect time for company, he thought dully. He forced a smile. "Sure, that'd be great. What are we having for dinner?"

From someplace around Mrs. Weasley's knees came the answer, "Steak and potatoes, Harry Potter, sir!"

Harry smiled again, this time it was genuine. "Dobby! When did you get here?" Dobby grinned back. "Around an hour ago, sir. Dobby put himself right to work making your dinner. "

Harry rolled his eyes. "Try not to work too hard, okay? And there are lots of empty rooms upstairs, take your pick." Dobby, not surprisingly, burst into noisy tears of gratitude, and wiped his eyes on Mrs. Weasley's apron as she gingerly patted Dobby on the head.

"Er…Dobby, so how did you get in? You know, the secret and all," Harry asked in an attempt to stop his noisy tears, though he still didn't feel like mentioning Dumbledore's name after the fight with his portrait in his office.

Dobby looked up from Mrs. Weasley's apron and smiled. "I asked Professor Dumbledore's portrait, sir. He told me his secret, sir, and then, Dobby could apparate here immediately!"

"That's great, Dobby. What happened to Winky?" Harry asked, looking around for the depressed little house-elf. Dobby shook his head sadly, "Winky is not well, Harry Potter Sir. Dobby has hid her in a room down the hall."

Harry nodded, and said, "Well, you can always give her a bedroom, too." He hastily added, before Dobby could start crying again, "When's the food ready?"

00000000000000000000

Harry skulked back into the drawing room to tell Ron and Hermione about dinner. Both were sitting calmly (too calmly, Harry thought) and silently. "Er..Ron, your parents are here. They're making us dinner. Dobby's here, too." He turned and left, silently admonishing himself for not trying to smooth things over.

Ron and Hermione silently followed Harry to the kitchen.

00000000000000000000

Although Ron and Hermione did a great job acting as though nothing was wrong between the two of them, the room still had a dismal air. Tonks sat quietly petting Crookshanks in her lap. Her lack of energy seemed to place a dark cloud over the entire room.

Quietly (and rather bravely, in Harry's opinion), Hermione asked her what was the matter. Tonks looked up, eyes wide. "I haven't heard from Remus in weeks! I know he is underground and can't contact me much, but I can't sleep!" She burst into noisy tears, not unlike Dobby's. Hermione simply patted Tonks on the back, and whispered softly that they had seen him earlier in the day.

Harry had, at that moment, an unpleasant realization. This wasn't how Ginny was at home, was it? He sneaked a glance at the Weasley family, but they had all eyes focused politely on their meal. Harry tried to rationalize it to himself. No, he and Ginny weren't engaged. They weren't even a couple anymore. He'd done the right thing, ending it. If he hadn't,_ then_ Ginny would be in Tonk's situation- miserable. He did a fair job of convincing himself that she was in fact, fine, before chewing.

He had hardly taken one bite, however, when they were interrupted again, this time in the form of a patronus. Several patronus, in fact. Once each to Mr. And Mrs. Weasley, Bill and Tonks. They each sat, stunned momentarily from whatever the message said, then quickly gave each other glances and jumped up from the table. Their silverware clattered to the floor and Crookshanks hissed. They were out the door before the trio could stand.

Hermione said some words Harry had previously only heard come from Ron's mouth. Ron stared at her, mouth hanging open in shock. He finally spluttered, "where do you think is happening?"

"I dunno." The three sat, mystified, scared, and angry they weren't going to help out. Ron had his arm draped protectively around Hermione, who leaned against him, fight apparently brushed aside. Harry sat alone, wishing he could be comforting Ginny.

00000000000000000000

An hour later, a copy of the Evening Prophet flew in. They all stared at it apprehensively. Finally, the owl gave a squawk of impatience, and Hermione tentatively reached to take the paper. She closed her eyes tightly as she unrolled the paper, but quickly opened them at Ron and Harry's gasp.

"Mass Murder at the Ministry of Magic," they moaned together, reading the headline splashed on the cover.

"We should be there," Harry muttered frantically. "The Order is all there," he gasped, before bellowing, "We have to go help them! The battle is still going!" He jumped up and frantically grabbed for his wand. "They might be injured! They need our help!"

"NO" Hermione screamed, also grabbing her wand. She quickly muttered a few words and a silvery otter patronus flew from her wand. Calmly, she said, "Let's just wait to see what Mrs. Weasley says. I just sent her a message asking for more information."

Harry rolled his eyes impatiently. He knew exactly what Mrs. Weasley would say, and it most certainly would contain the worlds "absolutely not". He wondered if she'd take the time to send a Howler in the middle of a battle.

He answered Hermione, "Don't bother to wait for an answer we don't want. Let's just go!" She still stood still. Why was she waiting? The Order was in trouble! They couldn't wait any longer! "People are dying!" Harry voiced. "We have to help NOW!"

Ron, his voice higher than usual, added, "I need to help my family! We have to go now!"

But Hermione stood her ground and faced the pair of them, pleading, "don't you understand? _That_ isn't our battle! If we die, there won't be anyone left to destroy the horcruxes!" She began to panic in earnest. "Don't be stupid!"

"Stupid!" Harry and Ron shouted back. "We'd be stupid not to help them!"

Hermione absently fingered her wand as she continued to plead. "We aren't supposed to go! We didn't receive the message. THIS isn't our battle! Ours will come." Her eyes were bright, and threatening to pool over in tears of anger and sadness, but her voice was steady, as was her stance.

Ron glared, "This conversation is over." He turned to walk out the door. A shot of light burst from Hermione's wand and Ron stiffened, swayed for a moment, and then loudly clattered to the floor.

Harry's mind vaguely grasped the fact that Hermione had attacked Ron.

Instantly, by pure instinct, Harry blocked Hermione's next attack. "_Expelliarmus_" he shouted as Hermione was thrown against the table. "What the hell do you think you are doing?" Harry screamed at her as she cowered below him.

Harry had sensed it. He hadn't heard the attack, or seen it. But he had felt it. Was that how powerful wizards felt?

Hermione was crumpled half under the table. She cradled her left arm tenderly. Tears were streaming down her face, but she stared at him defiantly. "You, Harry, are more important that the Order. Don't make me say it," she pleaded, but he continued to glare at her as she wiped absently at the blood that was trickling down her arm. "Harry," she cried, "Your life is more important! You mean more to the whole world than the lives of everyone in that building!"

Harry screamed, a throaty, from the gut scream that had been building, building since he learned of the prophecy. Burning to yell at Hermione, for saying he was more important than the witches and wizards who were losing their lives at this very moment. Hermione, who would stand by and let them be attacked. Who wouldn't fight. He longed to scream at her, but he couldn't. As disgusting as it was, it was the awful truth.

The awful truth. He'd trade anything to be rid of it. How many people died to save him already? Sirius, Dumbledore…who dies tonight?

He carelessly threw Hermione's wand back down to her, and sank wearily into a chair.

He heard the counter-curse to Ron's full-body bind. But…he looked up and saw Mr. Weasley helping Ron up from the floor. If he thought Hermione looked disheveled after her fall, she had nothing on Mr. Weasley. When had he entered the room? If it were possible, his feeling of self-worth sank even lower.

Hermione had stood back up, and wordlessly, Mr. Weasley healed her arm. Hermione squeaked, "thanks" and he patted her on her back. He simply stared a Harry for a moment. Harry's heart dropped as he realized how they looked. Here they had been, claiming they were adults, but were attacking each other. Harry started to give a feeble explanation, but Mr. Weasley had already settled into a chair.

The trio brushed off their sudden fight and crowded around Arthur, inquiring for details over the hasty departure during dinner.

Hermione pushed a glass of water in front of Mr. Weasley, which he eagerly drained.

"Soooo…what happened?" Ron finally pushed. Mr. Weasley looked at him, face drawn. "I might ask you three the same thing."

Ron muttered something incoherent. Hermione spoke up, "It doesn't matter right now. We just has a bit of a disagreement." She looked Arthur straight in the eyes. He glanced uneasily over their heads, but sighed and muttered, "Attack on the Ministry. We lost a lot of good people. Scrimgeour maybe."

"Dead?" Hermione gasped. Arthur removed his glasses while shaking his head. As he wiped the specks of dirt and blood onto his cloak, he muttered, "The Death Eaters got through thirty-seven aurors and ministry officials to get him." Pushing his glasses back up his nose, he stated, "Missing."

"_Thirty-seven_?" Ron echoed, incredulous. "Anyone we know?"

Mr. Weasley nodded his head. "Do you remember Ginny's friend? Michael Corner?" Unintended snorts escaped both Harry and Ron's mouths. Hermione and Mr. Weasley looked at them, astonished. "He lost his mother tonight." They hung their heads, embarrassed by the reaction.

"Lee Jordan? Looks like his parents were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Lost both of them." Hermione, whose eyes had already been pooling since before Mr. Weasley returned, burst into tears at the news of Lee Jordan's loss.

Harry stared at the floor. One of his first memories in the wizarding world- right before getting on the Hogwarts Express in his first year- was of Lee Jordan. A happy Lee Jordan, with a pet tarantula. Lee, announcing at his very first quidditch match. Lee, ecstatic over Harry's new Firebolt. Harry choked on a lump in his throat.

As hard as it was for Harry to have lost his parents as a baby, he couldn't imagine what it must be like to lose them at this age. It must be worse. A life full of memories. A life completely changed.

Unabashed by the tears streaming down her face, Hermione softly asked, "Percy wasn't at the Ministry, was he?"

Mr. Weasley slowly shook his head in frustration. "I don't know! He won't answer your mother's owl, but we didn't find him among the…the deceased."

Ron growled. "That jerk! How could he worry mum at a time like this!"

"Did you send Errol?" Hermione asked. Mr. Weasley muttered an "of course", to which Ron jumped up and said, "Let's send Pig. Errol probably had a heart attack. Pig's much younger."

Hermione and Harry rolled their eyes. Younger, perhaps, but certainly just as unreliable. "Let's send Hedwig," Harry decided. He grabbed a spare piece of parchment and scribbled a note. Hermione silently outstretched her hand. Harry handed the note over. Hermione quickly read it, groaned, and ripped it up. "Honestly, Harry. It is Percy. You've gotta be a bit more tactful." She proceeded to rewrite the note and roll it up.

Harry attached the letter to Hedwig, whom he quickly nuzzled and whispered, "Be safe out there." She gently nipped at his fingers and flew out the open window.

"Listen, kids," Mr. Weasley started, "Molly's a bit worried about everyone's safety. She wants to bring the family here tonight. The twins said they'd rather stay with Lee, and we aren't sure what to do about Fleur, as Dumbledore never passed her the secret." He paused.

Ron squeezed his dad's hand. "Thank goodness you were home from work."

Harry, after a brief moment of indecision, confided in Mr. Weasley, "We don't actually know how safe it is here. Snape's come around a couple times."

"Wh.. what?" Mr. Weasley coughed. "Listen," Harry rushed, "we didn't want to worry you about it. We took care of him just fine. I just wanted to let you know if you are worried about family safety."

Hermione tentatively added, "You might be, well, targets, Mr. Weasley. You definitely should come. We can take care of the password."

"We can?" Harry and Ron asked, confused. She rolled her eyes. "Of course we can." She continued, matter-of factly, "and maybe you should stay out of The Burrow for awhile."

"Er…Hermione?" Harry pressed. "Exactly how are we getting Fleur into the house?" Hermione looked at him. "Don't you ever pay attention?" Confused, Ron and Harry looked at each other, before muttering, "I guess not." Harry wondered if Hermione's eyes would ever get stuck from rolling them so much. "Call Dobby," she commanded.

"Oh, yeah," Ron exclaimed, as the answer finally dawned on him.

Harry did as he was told, but he didn't like the idea of it at all. Secrets should not be coming from the dead. It just seemed, well, it didn't seem like something Dumbledore would have approved of. Of course, Harry reminded himself, he currently wasn't very pleased with the former Headmaster's portrait, so why should he care if they were using it in a slightly unethical manner?

"Listen, Dobby," Hermione stated urgently. "Can you go back to Hogwarts, find Dumbledore's portrait, and ask for him to wait for us in a portrait near the Humped-Back Witch? Tell him we need to let Fleur into our headquarters."

Dobby, after glancing quickly at Harry for permission (a reluctant nod of "yes"), jumped up, exclaimed, "anything to help you!" and disappeared with a crack.

"Right," Hermione said assertively. "Where is Fleur now?" Mr. Weasley, astonished at the quick turn of events stumbled the words, "at St. Mungo's, she was helping care for Tonks, Bill, and a few others." He quickly finished, "don't worry, they'll all recover just fine."

A quick sigh of relief was followed by, "Okay, you go get Fleur, and have her at that manky street with the mannequin in," consulting her watch, "thirty minutes. Harry will meet you there, with the invisibility cloak on."

Sighing, Harry nodded in agreement. Simple enough. Apparate back to Hogsmeade. Take the passageway back to Hogwarts…his second trip today…although the first seemed so long ago. Find the portrait of Dumbledore. Get the password. Get back. Apologize to Dumbledore, his mind added, stubbornly. "Just a portrait," he muttered out loud. "Not the real person."

Mr. Weasley professed his thanks, and left, promising to send Mrs. Weasley and Ginny along later. Charlie was currently back in Romania.

"Poor Lee Jordan," Ron murmured. Harry nodded in agreement. "Gonna get my cloak," he muttered. "Walking back into the drawing room, Harry spotted their various clues they'd obtained so far. The picture of Regulus Black and the unknown woman with lanky hair and large eyes. The Hufflepuff cup, sitting so innocently. All of the books on Horcruxes they'd found. Spotting the pensieve, he grinned.

00000000000000000000

Rushing back to the kitchen, he plunked the pensieve on the table. "Listen, let's make something for the family. Bring their mind off of such sad times." Putting his wand to his temple, he imagined the first time he met the Weasley family. Watching Mrs. Weasley scrub at the brown spot on Ron's nose outside of the Hogwarts Express. Grinning, he pulled the memory into the pensieve, where it swirled and the trio watched it, giggling.

00000000000000000000

Too quickly, Dobby had returned, bowed lowly, and proclaimed, "Dumbledore's portrait said that it seems as though Fleur would be a useful member of the Order. He'd be happy to pass on the password."

Hermione gave a squeak of happiness and pushed Harry through the door.

00000000000000000000

Yawning, Harry apparated to the "manky mannequin" as Hermione had so elegantly put it. Shivering in the late night chill of summer was Fleur, accompanied by Mr. Weasley.

Harry walked a bit closer to Mr. Weasley and muttered, "I'm right behind you." He gave a bit of a jump, Fleur pointed her wand and exclaimed, "what is eet?" Chuckling, Mr. Weasley said, "just Harry."

Harry spoke, a bit louder this time. "Fleur, I'm going to throw my cloak over you, okay? Then we are going to apparate to Hogsmeade." She nodded in understanding. "Mr. Weasley, thanks for everything. We'll see you soon."

With a crack, Mr. Weasley was gone, leaving Harry and Fleur alone in the dark and deserted street. "Right," he said, suddenly nervous for some reason, "Let's go."

00000000000000000000

They sneaked up to Honeydukes. Harry was beginning to wonder whether his luck would ever wear out. How many times has he broken into Honeydukes, after all? Fortunately, tonight he was still lucky. They slipped into the narrow passageway and proceeded in silence into Hogwarts.

Before he knew it, Harry and Fleur were slipping into the deserted corridor of Hogwarts. Squeezing past the witch, Harry found himself standing in front of a large portrait with several witches giggling nervously, entertaining Dumbledore.

Instantly, Harry flushed. "Er…Professor, sir? I, well, I know we didn't see eye-to eye today, but…well, I…I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I'm sorry." He looked the portrait right in the eyes, vaguely wondering why he was apologizing to a piece of canvas. The witches surrounding Dumbledore (Harry recognized the Fat Lady amongst them) sniffed at the thought of Harry raising his voice to Dumbledore.

Sighing, the portrait of Dumbledore smiled and said amicably, "We agree to disagree then. Ladies, if you don't mind, I'd like to speak with these two alone for a few minutes."

Fleur gazed up at the image of Dumbledore. "Well, my dear, I hear you'd like to join the Order of the Phoenix. After watching you during the tournament, I'd say you will be a great asset to the Order."

"You speak what you do not know. But I will 'umbly do my best."

"Ah, spoken so elegantly! Now, my dear, I'd like to pass on a…well, the code, to enter our headquarters," he began.

"Wait a moment, Professor," Harry said. He wasn't taking any chances. After all, Hogwarts was supposed to be empty the previous time, and he'd found Malfoy. He consulted the Marauder's Map, found it completely empty save himself and Fleur (where was Filch, he wondered?) and, just to be safe, muttered, "_muffliato_" before nodding to Dumbledore to continue.

00000000000000000000

After receiving the secret, Harry and Fleur quickly left. It was nearly three A.M. when they finally arrived at the doorstep of Number 12, Grimmauld Place. Yawning, but remembering his first experience at entering, he muttered, "think about what Dumbledore's portrait told you."

"But of course," she muttered, forehead furrowing in concentration. Harry held his breath, praying it would work. It must, because Fleur confidently stepped up to the door and let herself in. Harry followed, closed the door tightly and muttered a quick word of caution to avoid the portrait in the hallway.

Everyone was seated around the kitchen table in various states of sleepiness. Ginny was curled up on the floor with Crookshanks. As they entered, Bill jumped up from the table and gave Fleur an enormous kiss that made Mrs. Weasley blush. Apparently he'd already been released from St. Mungo's.

Harry couldn't help himself. He grinned. He might have been worried about endangering the Weasley family, but he could help but be happy when they surrounded him.

"Any word from Percy yet?" he asked. A groggy Ron muttered something incomprehensible. Harry took it as a no and muttered "goodnight" before making his way up to his room, smacking Ron on the head so that he would follow.

00000000000000000000

"Rufus Scrimgeour Found Dead by Muggles" the Daily Prophet read that morning.

Scanning the paper, Mr. Weasley grimaced, but offered no details to Harry, who was sitting next to him, as they were interrupted by Hedwig's arrival.

She landed next to Harry and ruffled her feathers importantly. Harry stroked her wings as he removed the letter, which he handed to Mrs. Weasley, hovering over him.

She read it, huffily crushed it into a ball and tossed it into the corner. "He's fine. Not that he's worried about anyone in our family. Didn't even bother to ask." She began to whip up pancake with amazing speed. Dobby hovered in the corner, afraid of her elbows that were flying too and fro. Harry still had not seen Winky since her arrival.

Hermione asked, curiously, "what happens now that Scrimgeour died?" Mr. Weasley said thoughtfully, "You know, people are going to be very worried. The Minister never..er..died last time. Shows how powerful you-know-who is getting. I really don't know. The Ministry. What a mess." Shaking his head, "I'd better go in to the office and see if there is anything I can do."

Harry stayed at the table, munching on pancakes supplied by Mrs. Weasley, mulling in his thoughts. It all seemed too fast. It'd barely been a year since Scrimgeour had been appointed. His death seemed very anticlimactic. Who would be appointed now? Was anyone safe now?

Shortly later, Bill and Fleur emerged from upstairs. Yawning loudly and stretching, Bill slung an arm his mother and asked, "Is there anything you need from The Burrow? We're going back to grab a few things later." She shook her head, but said, "maybe you should grab Ginny's school things."

Harry stared, amazed. Did Mrs. Weasley still trust to send Ginny away? After the _Minister of Magic_ had been killed the night before?"

After Ron had woken and scarfed down some pancakes, the trio headed back to the drawing room.

00000000000000000000

Harry entered the room tentatively. Only yesterday, Hermione and Ron had had that scuffle- in lieu of recent events, it seemed to have been swept under the rug- but would it be revived this morning? Only a few hours before, they had attacked each other with wands. Why were they acting so, well..normal?

"Er…" Harry asked, "did you show everyone the memories last night?"

Ron grinned. "It was great. Everyone had fun. Too bad Fred and George weren't there for it."

"Did you hear from them?" Harry asked. "How's Lee doing?"

"Dunno, probably not so well, though, right mate?" Ron muttered. Noticing Hermione's eyes, which were beginning to cloud again, Ron quickly changed the subject. "So, what should we do today?"

Hermione gave him a grateful look. "We've definitely gotta crack this horcrux. We can't let anymore deaths occur," she said, determined.

00000000000000000000

Lunch that afternoon was a fun affair. Though the trio felt a bit overcrowded, and had not come any closer to discovering what the clue was to the horcrux, they did discover that they charm Hermione had placed on the room a few months ago was still holding, as it sent Bill flying ten feet in the air when he tried to enter the room.

He was recounting the experience during lunch when the twins showed up, rushing through the door. "Mum…dad, is everyone here?" George shouted, panic in his voice.

"Of course we are, dear." Mrs. Weasley said, worry showing in her voice, "what happened?" Glancing at his father significantly, Fred muttered, "Nothing. George's just a bit uptight after what happened to Lee's folks yesterday." They sat down and helped finish off the lunch. Everyone eyed them suspiciously. Harry may not have known the twins for as long as the rest of the family, but he certainly know when they weren't telling the full story.

After lunch, Bill and Fleur jumped up, muttered, "sure no one needs anything but Ginny?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "School doesn't start for another couple of weeks."

Fred squeaked, "where are you going?" Bill looked at him, "well, you know, that place you used to live at. Used to call it home, remember that? Still store a few explosives there, don't you?" He rolled his eyes at him, but Fred muttered, "just don't."

"What happened at The Burrow?" Mrs. Weasley finally demanded, putting two and two together.

"Mum," Fred began, but George interrupted, "take a seat, relax. And remember, all of us are safe."

"Exactly correct, my dear brother," Fred continued, "There is a teensy little problem about The Burrow."

"Which is…?" Growled Mrs. Weasley. "We sort of blew it up," Fred said apologetically.

"YOU WHAT?" screamed Mrs. Weasley. George and Fred glanced at the rest of the family, who had various states of disbelief on their faces.

Hermione flatly asked, "You're joking, right?"

"Bingo Hermione." George said, pointing a finger at her. "Now that you know the house is still there, you wouldn't be too worried about the fact that there is a tiny little insignificant certain mark floating over it."

Mrs. Weasley collapsed in her chair. Everyone fell silent. Fred muttered, over the calm, "well, maybe you will be worried," before falling silent.

Mrs. Weasley attempted to scoop up everyone in the room at once into a tight hug. "I forbid anyone to leave this house today!" Fred and George shouted, "We've got a job to go to!" In the corner, Dobby covered his ears to protect them from the screaming.

Ron, despite himself, grinned. "Just like home, eh?" Harry couldn't quite bring himself to smile.


End file.
